KUWAIT CITY, 24 October 2005 — OPEC member Kuwait is on track to boast record high revenues after the Finance Ministry reported yesterday a sharp rise in earnings in the first five months of the current fiscal year. Figures posted on the ministry’s website show that by the end of August, the fifth month of the 2005-2006 fiscal year, Kuwait earned 5.36 billion dinars ($18.4 billion) due to soaring oil prices and higher output. The figure is 17 percent higher than budget estimates for the whole year of $15.7 billion. The state budget for the current fiscal year, which runs between April 2005 and March 2006, estimates spending at $24.7 billion, leaving a projected deficit of $9 billion.