$50 a barrel oil 'will not cut Kuwait spending plan'

Kuwait will not cut spending even if the price of oil falls below $50 a barrel, the figure the Gulf Arab state's 2008/09 budget is based on, the finance minister said on Wednesday.

"We will not cut spending...We are not going to stop spending on development projects. It will not affect our investments," Mustafa al-Shamali told reporters when asked if Kuwait would scale back investment spending if the oil price dropped below $50 a barrel.

Oil was above $65 a barrel on Wednesday, down more than 50 percent from a record peak of $147.27 in July. (Reuters)