An annual review of the budget for oil-rich Alberta found total revenue came in lower than budgeted, though the provincial finance minister was upbeat. The decline in crude oil prices resulted in a 3.7 percent contraction in Alberta’s economy. “Energy companies significantly decreased investment this past year,” the provincial government said in its latest review. “Corporate profits decreased and employment, wages and household incomes were all negatively influenced across the province.” Crude oil prices moved from about $105 per barrel in June 2014 to an average price the provincial government said was about $4 per barrel lower than it expected. West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark price for oil, dropped below $30 per barrel […]