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14 May 2004
MADRID – Spain’s economics secretary said Friday the government was not about to adopt measures to compensate economic sectors affected by the rise in the price in oil.
The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil was Friday standing at USD 38 in Europe.
David Vegara predicted Spanish GDP would rise by 2.8 percent this year, slightly lower than the 3 percent forecast by the previous conservative governent, due to the effects of oil price rises.
At a press conference Friday in Madrid, Vegara said the govenment believed this was a realistic rise given the price of oil was expected to reach between USD 30 and USD 35 a barrel.
He said he believed that the change in the price of crude oil will have transitory effects.
Once international political tensions had relaxed, there would be a real fall in the price of crude in spite of the tough expansion in demand in Asia, overall in China and a rise in the price of shares.
Vegara believed that the price of petrol had hit a ceiling, according to various international markets and should show a fall.
For this reason, the government was not about to adopt measures to compensate economic sectors affected by the rise in the price in petrol.
[Copyright EFE with Expatica]
Subject: Spanish news