Algeria to cut spending and energy investment, delay projects

ALGIERS, March 22 (Reuters) - Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Sunday ordered the government to cut public spending by 30% and delay state projects to cope with financial pressures, the presidency said in a statement.

Tebboune also asked the state energy firm Sonatrach to reduce planned investment to $7 billion from $14 billion, the statement said, after a cabinet meeting to discuss state finances and the global oil market after a collapse in the price of oil. Algeria is a leading oil and gas exporter. (Reporting by Hamid Ould Ahmed; Editing by Kevin Liffey)