During January-December 2010 the average price for Russian Urals oil was 78.2 dollars per barrel, said the specialist for the Ministry of Finance Alexander Sakovich.  According to him, in 2009 the same price was at 61.065 dollars a barrel. 

 Earlier, the Ministry of Economic Development had raised the forecast of oil prices in 2010 and 2011. The updated forecast for 2010 was 77.5 dollars per barrel compared to $ 75 budgeted.  At the beginning of December Russian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said that over the next three years the price of oil might fall below 60 dollars per barrel for a period of up to six months. In the past, he underlined, the price of oil was above 70 per barrel only for two years, and the rest of the time in the last decade it was below 70. “And we are planning  that it will remain above the 70, and we’ll live with it,” said a worried Kudrin. 
 He also highlighted that now Russia is in a situation of “high enough” state budget deficit. Today with oil prices at $ 75 per barrel Moscow has a shortfall of 4.6% of GDP. In 2007 with  the oil price of 70 dollars per barrel Russia had a surplus of 5% of GDP. So it is time to cut the State expenses.

Russian Outlook – EuropaRussia 2010-2011

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