The amount that the Russian Government has allocated to support the economy may not be enough, and about 2-3% of GDP will need to be added to the initial bailout package. This means saving the Russian economy will cost more than 7% of GDP, or over RUR 7 trn ($95 bln), head of the Russian Accounts Chamber Alexei Kudrin said, quoted by RBC.
The Government previously earmarked RUR 1.4 trn ($19 bln) for anti-crisis measures (without direct spending). That was expected to replace the shortfall in federal revenues, but the support was not strong enough.
According to Alexei Kudrin, the shortfall of revenues is likely to reach RUR 3-4 trn ($40-50 bln), mainly due to the low oil prices. An additional 2-3% of GDP should be able to fill the gap.
This injection into the economy should help the Government make good on all of its budgetary obligations. The required amount can be raised not only by tapping the National Wealth Fund (NWF), but also through an increase in public debt, in particular, issuing government bonds. Russia has the lowest public debt in the world at 14% of GDP.