Kuwait's emir says Gulf nations' development affected by fall in oil prices

Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah says Gulf countries' national development programs are being affected by the slide in oil prices, which have hit the oil-producing and exporting countries' incomes.

Al-Sabah was speaking at the annual summit of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council in the Qatari capital of Doha on Tuesday, the same day that the price of brent crude oil hit a five-year low of $65. That represents a 43 percent drop since the summer.

An International Monetary Fund report on Kuwait also released Tuesday said that a decline in oil prices should not trigger immediate spending cuts, but that it places more urgency on implementing the government's medium-term consolidation plans to contain current spending levels.