Saudi Arabia Accelerates $2.5 Trillion Mining Plans To Cut Oil Reliance

After enjoying a rare budget surplus in 2022 amid high oil prices, most Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) economies have seen their budget deficits widen with current oil prices still well below what they require to balance their budgets.  According to the IMF, Saudi Arabia, the GCC’s biggest economy, needs an oil price of $96.20 per barrel to balance its books, more than $20 above current oil prices. The situation is not helped by the fact that over the past two years, the oil-rich nation has borne the lion’s share of OPEC+ production…