Oman's budget deficit for the first seven months of 2016 rose 68.3% to OMR4bn, as plunging crude oil export revenues started affecting fiscal balance, according to data released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI). This is against a deficit of OMR2.4bn for the same period of last year and against a projected deficit of OMR3.3bn for the entire year, as estimated by government. The country’s net oil revenue for the seven-month period ending July, 2016 plunged 46.1% to OMR1,794.1mn from OMR3,326.2mn for the same period of last year. On the expenditure side, there was a 3.3% fall in total expenditure that stood at OMR6,663.8mn during the seven-month period, against OMR6,889.9mn for the same period of last year. (Times of Oman)