Saudi Arabia's government has set aside SAR100bn (USD26.7bn) to pay debts that it owes to private sector companies, according to an official document issued by the Ministry of Finance. "Payments should not exceed SAR100bn," the document adds, saying the money will come from budget surpluses accumulated in previous years, without clarifying whether the government expects to pay out all of the maximum allocation. The document, labelled urgent and issued by the finance ministry for transmission to all government agencies, says a royal decree has mandated the finance minister "to take the necessary procedures to pay all delayed payments by the end of the current fiscal year". Government agencies should register payment orders at a finance ministry website created for this purpose within three weeks, the document says. (Reuters)