TASS: Russian finance ministry projects $60 bln in capital outflow at 2015 year-end

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov says that the Russian Finance Ministry expects Russia's capital outflow will be $60 billion at 2015 year-end, according to the Russian news agency TASS. 

"The capital outflow declined considerably; this is also a measure of our activities in the budget policy sphere. The outflow totaled $53 billion in eleven months. Our estimate is $60 billion by the year-end and it is nearly twice lower than initially projected," he said on Thursday, TASS wrote.

Russia's net capital outflow provisionally amounted to $53 billion in January — November 2015 and declined nearly twofold year-on-year, the Bank of Russia said earlier on Wednesday. According to the Central Bank's outlook, the capital outflow in 2015 will be $70 billion. The Ministry of Economic Development projects it at approximately $72 billion.

Based on the prevailing budgetary situation the Russian Finance Ministry will not withdraw additional 500 billion rubles ($7.23 billion) from the Reserve Fund in 2015, although it has that right, Anton Siluanov went on to say. He confirmed the previous estimate that 2.6 trillion rubles ($37.6 billion) will be spent from the Reserve Fund in 2015.

"A total of 2.6 trillion rubles ($37.6 billion) will be spent from the Reserve Fund this year. This year we did not use the right to withdraw 500 billion rubles ($7.23 billion) from the Reserve Fund in case we will not have enough income," Siluanov said. According to him, as a result of the Finance Ministry plans, by the end of the year the volume of the Reserve Fund will be at 3.4 trillion rubles ($49.15 billion), the Russian National Wealth Fund — 4.9 trillion rubles ($70.83 billion). "The total reserves amount to 8.3 trillion rubles ($119.98 billion), or 11.3% of GDP," Siluanov added.