MOSCOW (AP/Dow Jones) - Russia is planning larger budget surpluses for 2004 and 2005, a Finance Ministry official said Thursday.
Initial projections are for a surplus of 1.3 percent of gross domestic product in 2004 and 1.6 percent in 2005, the official told Dow Jones NewsWires on condition of anonymity. That compares with a surplus of only 0.8 percent in the budget draft for next year that will be submitted to Russia's lower house of parliament in the fall.
The new figures were announced as the Russian government approved key budget projections for 2003 and beyond on Thursday. Expenditures for defense and law enforcement are expected to increase through 2004, as they are for social programs and education.
The 2003 budget includes an exceptionally heavy debt repayment burden of dlrs 17 billion. President Vladimir Putin has pledged to slash Russia's foreign debt, while refusing to accept more big international loans.