Moscow Region Expects $85M In Additional Revenues This Year

Additional budget revenues of the Moscow regions are expected to reach 2.5 billion rubles (about $85 million) this year, regional deputy finance minister Valery Nosov announced at a press conference today. He noted that the planned volume of budget revenues was expected to reach 22 billion rubles ($745 million) and expenditures were set on the same level. However, due to expected additional revenues, the Moscow region increased budget expenditures to 26 billion rubles ($880 million). Therefore, the budget deficit will reach about 2 billion rubles ($68 million). The 2002 budget provides for an increase in expenditures to 31 billion rubles ($1.05 billion). In addition, the maximum volume of revenues was set at 2.1 billion rubles ($71 million) for the Moscow region in 2001. The Moscow regional government is considering the possibility of taking some foreign loans, however, Nosov believes this may happen no earlier than in 2003.