Kuwait emir says misuse of budget surplus led to imbalances

KUWAIT: Misuse of Kuwait's state budget surplus has led to structural imbalances in the OPEC member's economy, the Gulf Arab country's ruler was quoted as saying by the state news agency KUNA on Monday.

"The misuse of surplus and not investing it in the right direction has led to structural imbalances in our economy and threatens the future of the country in the implementation of programmes and financial obligations," Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah said.

Sheikh Sabah was speaking at the first meeting of an advisory committee that was set up to look into financial developments in the world's No. 4 oil exporter.

Copyright Reuters, 2011