(Detailing growth, income)
DUBAI, December 27 (Reuters) – Dubai, the main business and financial center of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has agreed a 57.1 billion dirham ($ 15.55 billion) budget for 2021, when the economy is expected to recover from a severe recession. last year. , his governor said Sunday.
The statement did not compare actual costs in 2020, but the size of the 2021 budget is 14% lower than the 66.4 billion dirhams it had set for 2020.
This year’s budget had included economic segments from the global Expo 2020 fair, a six-month event that was initially slated to begin in October but was postponed for a year due to COVID-19 pandemics.
The 2021 budget, agreed by Dubai governor Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, takes into account the unique economic situation of fiscal year 2020 and the impact of the pandemic on the global economy, the statement said on the Sheikh website Mohammed.
Dubai, with its diverse trade and tourism economy, was hit hard by the closure and cancellation of flights earlier this year.
The economy is expected to hold 6.2% in 2020 before growing 4% in 2021, supported by a continued recovery of economic activities, he said.
The statement said Dubai is expected to receive public revenue of 52.314 billion dirhams, despite the economic stimulus measures taken by the government to reduce some taxes and freeze tax increases.
Non-tax revenue, derived from state taxes on various services, accounts for 59% of total expected revenue, and tax revenue accounts for 31 % and government investment income 6%.
This means that Dubai is expected to post a deficit of 4.786 billion dirhams in 2021, up from the budget deficit of 2.4 billion dirhams in 2020.
The public revenue forecast is based on ongoing activity in the emirate and is not dependent on oil revenue. Oil revenues account for 4% of total expected revenue for fiscal year 2021.
The government has also agreed 9% of expenditure to maintain the volume of investment in infrastructure.
$ 1 = 3.6728 UAE dirham Reporting by Yousef Saba and Saeed Azhar; Edited by Kirsten Donovan