Russia federal budget deficit reaches $79 billion in seven months

Russia's federal budget deficit expanded to 6.5 trillion rubles (approximately $79 billion) during the first seven months of the year, marking a 32.3% increase compared to the same period last year. Data from the Russian Ministry of Finance shows that while budget revenues rose by 8.8% to 22.1 trillion rubles, expenditures grew more rapidly at 14.5%, reaching 28.6 trillion rubles.

The deficit is driven by a divergence in revenue streams. Non-oil and gas revenues increased by 18.3% to 17.52 trillion rubles. Conversely, revenues from oil and gas declined by 16.8% to 4.6 trillion rubles, although the Ministry noted these figures remained above the projected baseline levels.

Rising expenditures are largely attributed to increased spending on the defense industry, which has placed significant pressure on the federal budget in recent years.