Russia may be thankful to OPEC

…The crucial thing for Russia, the bulk of whose revenues come from oil exports, is that oil prices should not fall below $60 per barrel. The Russian budget for 2007 is based on an optimistic forecast for Russian export crude, $61 per barrel. However, its actual price has been no more than $56-$57since autumn, as its quality is believed to be inferior to that of the world’s leading brands.

Russian experts are unanimous in believing that the price used in the budget is exaggerated. Still, most of them agree that prices in 2007 will not be much different from this year’s, and the budget will be fulfilled, only with a smaller surplus than the planned 1.5 trillion rubles. The Stabilization Fund will grow more slowly than planned (it was expected to increase from the current 2 trillion to 4.2 trillion rubles by the end of 2007). Overall, however, everything should turn out well for Russia, thanks to OPEC.

RIA Novosti