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Saudi Arabia’s fiscal deficit widened in the fourth quarter to the highest level in five years, as lower oil prices put pressure on the kingdom’s finances.The government posted a budget deficit of 94.9bn riyals ($25.3bn) in last three months of 2025. That brought the total shortfall for the year to nearly 276.6bn riyals, up from 115.6bn riyals in 2024, according to the Ministry of Finance. The figure for all of last year equated to roughly 5.5% of gross domestic product.Non-oil revenue climbed to about 122.6bn riyals in the fourth quarter of 2025, while oil revenue slid to around 154.2bn riyals from 170.8bn riyals a year earlier, according to the ministry data.The kingdom has been running budget deficits since late 2022. Bloomberg Economics estimates its oil fiscal breakeven price at $97 per barrel in 2025, or $114 when the sovereign wealth fund’s domestic spending is included. That’s far below today’s price for Brent of $71.The wide gap has led to Saudi Arabia borrowing much more through international bond markets, while diversifying its funding mix through alternative means of financing, including private markets.It has also caused the government to accelerate a pullback from some of the huge projects that are part of the Vision 2030 plan to diversify from petroleum. Officials have said the focus is now on spending more wisely and drawing in more investment from the private sector in the years ahead.Expenditures rose slightly in 2025 amid increases in financing expenses and grants, according to the budget statement released on Monday.Saudi officials expect the fiscal deficit for this year to decrease to 3.3% of GDP. Analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Bank of America Corp estimate the figure will be higher, at 5%-6%. 

South Korea's fiscal deficit reached over 88 trillion won (US$61.8 billion) in the first eight months of the year, the finance ministry said Thursday. The managed fiscal balance, a key gauge of fiscal health calculated on stricter terms, posted a deficit of 88.3 trillion won in the cited period, according to data from the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Total revenue grew 35 trillion won from the same period last year to 431.7 trillion won. In detail, tax revenue expanded 28.6 trillion won on-year to 260.8 trillion won. Total expenditures increased 38.4 trillion won on-year to 485.4 trillion won. The government earlier projected the shortfall to align with the original annual target of around 111.6 trillion won toward the end of the year.