Kuwait’s parliament has passed the budget for the 2018-2019 fiscal year, projecting a huge deficit for the fourth year in a row amid a shrinking economy, said a report.

The shortfall for the accounting year, which began in Kuwait on April 1, is estimated at more than $21 billion, about 17.5 per cent of the Opec member’s gross domestic product, reported Arab News.

The actual deficit may turn out to be lower than forecast if oil prices rise, with crude currently calculated at about $50 a barrel, $25 below market prices, it stated.

State budget revenues are projected at $49.5 billion, up 12 per cent on last year’s estimates, while spending is forecast to reach $71 billion, about 8.5 percent more than last year, it added.

After posting healthy surpluses for 16 straight years, Kuwait has posted a budget deficit in each of the past three years after oil prices began to slide in mid-2014.

Finance Minister Nayef Al Hajjraf said Kuwait’s economic growth contracted by 2.9 per cent last year due to low oil prices, reported Arab News.

Like other Gulf states, which rely heavily on oil income, Kuwait has imposed revenue-boosting measures such as raising power and fuel prices, stated the report.

The emirate has a sovereign wealth fund worth more than $600 billion, it added.