Another deficit is likely, but it will be in line with EU standards, say Saudi ministers keen to keep investing in the Kingdom's economic diversification away from oil and towards Vision 2030

With subsidies still being paid, the budget deficit has ballooned from $45bn in 2024 to an expected $62bn next year. This largesse worries some, but apparently not the government

Damascus has artificially lowered prices for years, but Syrians today cannot afford basics like fuel without them, meaning its budget has become a delicate balancing act

A big rise in spending in nominal terms says much more about the collapse of the pound than government spending power, as it continues to drop subsidies, including on fuel, deepening poverty rates