Press Release: New estimates for 2004 agricultural budget: EUR 1 billion less than planned

The regular update of the estimate for the 2004 budget related to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has revealed that less expenditure is required. The Commission therefore proposed on 29 October 2003 modifying the budget proposal for 2004, and reducing it by around €1 billion. The main reason for this revision is the drought in the summer of 2003, which dramatically reduced the quantities of cereals for export, and thus the export refunds from the EU budget. The drought also led to the advance payment of some direct aids in the animal sector from the 2003 budget.