MOSCOW, August 6 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Stabilization Fund, established to accrue surplus revenues from high world oil prices, yielded income of 9.5% in foreign currency over the year, the finance minister said Monday.
"From July 24, 2006 to July 24, 2007, income from the Stabilization Fund's investment totaled 9.5% in foreign currency," Alexei Kudrin told a meeting between the president and government members.
"Although we expect less profit in the longer term, this year has been very favorable," the minister said. "We have received $3.3 billion in profit over the past year."
The federal budget profit hit 3.2 trillion rubles ($127 billion) in the first half of this year, or 207 billion rubles ($8 billion) more against the same period last year, expenditure stood at 2.2 trillion rubles ($85 billion) and surplus amounted to 1.07 trillion rubles ($42 billion) in the same period, he said.
Kudrin said the money supply doubled from August 1, 2006 to August 1, 2007, setting a record. "If we did not have the Stabilization Fund, the money supply would have increased a lot more, and inflation would have been higher," Kudrin said.
According to the Finance Ministry's investment make up, U.S. dollars account for 45% of the fund's foreign currency, euros make up 45%, and British pounds 10%.
From 2008, the Stabilization Fund will be divided into the Reserve Fund and the National Prosperity Fund. The Reserve Fund, expected to total 10% of Russia's GDP, will cushion the federal budget in the event of an oil price plunge. Oil and gas revenues above this limit will supplement current budget spending and will go to the National Prosperity Fund.
