The finance minister says the soaring price of oil will not be factored into the upcoming budget.

The US and Israeli attacks on Iran have had a dramatic impact on the price of oil, soaring well above US$100 earlier this week.

Last year’s budget was based on oil prices projected at US$73 per barrel.

Minister Craig Pardy says with the sudden fluctuation in oil, it’s hard to factor into the budget, which will likely be delivered in the next month.

Pardy says governments are often criticized for using an “inflated” benchmark for oil prices in their forecasts.

“I would think that this bump now ought not to affect what the price of oil would be forecasted for this year because it’s in such close proximity to our budget time” says Pardy.