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Russia’s budget deficit shrinks

According to preliminary estimates from the Russian Ministry of Finance, Russia’s federal budget revenues reached 29.67 trillion rubles in January October. This figure represents a 28.4% increase compared to the same period in 2023. The ministry estimated the budget deficit for the first ten months of 2024 at 220 billion rubles, or 0.1% of GDP. This is 830 billion rubles less than the previous year.

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The ministry specified that oil and gas revenues grew by 32.3% over ten months, reaching 9.54 trillion rubles. Non-oil and gas revenues increased by 26.6%, amounting to 20.13 trillion rubles.

“We noted a stable positive trend in terms of key non-oil and gas revenues, both for the federal budget (+27% year-on-year) and the budget system in general (+20% year-on-year),” the ministry stated.

According to the Finance Ministry, revenues from turnover taxes, including VAT, increased by 15.8% over the reporting period and exceeded the target. This “creates a solid foundation for further accelerated revenue growth,” the ministry noted. The volume of federal budget expenditures was preliminarily estimated at 29.8 trillion rubles, which is 23.7% higher than the previous year.

Experts assess these indicators as positive.

“The fact that a low budget deficit is beneficial for financial stability is indisputable,” noted Sergei Khestanov, an economist and Associate Professor at the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA).

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