"This is how much we have so far, and we hope to increase it," Alexei Kudrin, a deputy prime minister, has said.
Russia should have a stabilization fund consisting of petrodollars next year as well, Kudrin, who is also Russia's finance minister, told the students of the Finance Ministry's Budget and Treasury Academy.
"We will expend this [stabilization fund] on strategic goals, we will not let it go to waste. We only get high oil prices once every 20 or 30 years," Kudrin remarked. The fund will also make Russia's economy less exposed to oil prices, he said.
Kudrin went on to underline the importance of budget surpluses. "This is the fourth year in a row that we have been in surplus, and the whole country benefits," Kudrin remarked.
Inflation, for example, can be lowered, from an anticipated 12% or thereabouts in 2003 to 10% in 2004 and just 5%-6% in two or three years from now.
Budget surpluses also keep the ruble steady, Kudrin continued. They encourage economic growth, they are good for the country's credit ratings and reduce the cost of borrowing for Russian industry. Investors can put their money into Russia without fear of devaluation or default. Personal incomes also grow - these have gone up 8%-10% in real terms in the last few years, Kudrin added. <>
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