Gabon Cuts 2017 Budget Again

Gabon’s cabinet has cut its 2017 budget by over 5% as persistently low crude prices and falling output pressure the oil-producing Central African economy, it said in a statement on Thursday, Reuters reported. Next year’s budget will drop to 2.478 trillion CFA francs ($4.23 billion) in 2017 from 2.626 trillion CFA francs this year, the statement said, citing a drop in oil prices and production in the OPEC member. It comes after a small budget drop in 2016 and a 14% drop in 2015, both due to a steep drop in crude prices since 2014 and depleting oil fields.