The Algerian Finance Minister Karim Djoudi on Sunday presented the draft budget law 2013 at the National Assembly, the official APS news agency reported.

With no new taxes, the draft law of 2013 suggests a budget increase compared to that of 2012; expecting however a deficit of 3,059.8 billion DZD, (38.2 billion U.S. dollars), an equivalent of 18.9 percent of the GDP, compared to 28 percent in 2012, APS noted.

The draft law expects a 3,820 billion DZD (47.7 billion dollars) as state budget, up by 10 percent compared to 2012, while expenditures they are set at 6,737.9 billion DZD (84.1 billion dollars) less by 11 percent.

Concerning ordinary taxation, the upward trend that has been characterizing the recent years should be confirmed in 2013, the source added. In terms of oil taxation, the draft budget law forecasts 2204.1 billion DZD (27.5 billion dollars) compared to 1615.9 billion DZD (20.1 billion dollars) in 2012.

The expected operating expenditures for 2013 are amounted at 4335.6 billion DZD (54.1 billion dollars), down by 12 percent compared to 2012, while equipment expenditures they are set at 2544.2 billion DZD (31.7 billion dollars), down by 9.8 percent compared to 2012, the source said.

In his allocution, Djoudi explained the decrease in operating expenditures to the "non-renewal of amounts reserved for recall salaries and allowances system in 2013," estimated at 679 billion DZD (8.5 billion dollars) by the budget law of 2012. In recent years, the staff of public sector benefited from wage hikes, often with retroactive effect.

If not these wage hikes, the operating budget for 2013 would have recorded a slight increase of 3 percent compared to 2012, Djoudi was quoted as saying by APS.

Yet, the draft budget law of 2013 forecasts the creation of 52, 672 job opportunities in the public sector, bringing thus its workforce to nearly 2 million employees.

Meanwhile, the draft budget law 2013 suggests a barrel of oil to 37 dollars for the reference price and 90 dollars for market price, in addition to an exchange rate of 76 DZD to 1 USD (74 DZD = 1 USD in 2012).

The draft law also expects growth rate of 5 percent (4.7 percent in 2012) and 5.3 percent excluding hydrocarbons sector.

More specifically the draft law suggests 4.4 percent growth rate in hydrocarbons sector, 5.7 percent in services, 6.1 percent in construction and public works, and 8.5 percent for agriculture. The expected inflation rate is set at 4 percent (same as 2012), while the volume of oil exports would hit 61.3 billion dollars, up 4 percent. As for imports, they would increase by 2 percent to 46 billion dollars, concluded the source.