MOSCOW, August 1 (RIA Novosti) - The average price of Urals oil hit $74.24 per barrel in July against a record $69 last July, a source in the Russian economics ministry said Wednesday.
The source said oil prices in July and August would allow the ministry to see if the Russian federal budget is on track to meet its targets, and whether there will be any increased revenue from oil export duty in 2007.
The index will also be used to calculate Russian oil export duty for October-November 2007, Alexander Sakovich, a senior tax and duty officer at the Russian Finance Ministry, said earlier.
He said oil export revenue hit 1.2 trillion rubles ($47 billion) in 2006, while the 2007 budget forecast 1.26 trillion rubles ($49 billion) in income at $61 per barrel.
In the first half of this year the average oil price was $59.6 per barrel against $61.2 per barrel in the same period last year. According to the 2006 budget report, the average oil price was $61.1 per barrel last year.
