OREANDA-NEWS. The debt of the Russian federal government against the background of the crisis exceeded its liquid assets. This was reported by RBC news agency, citing statistics from the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Russia. A positive difference between these indicators has been observed since the summer of 2019.

On April 1, at the beginning of the crisis caused be coronavirus pandemic, government deposits totaled a record 17 trillion roubles. At the same time, the federal government debt amounted to 14.5 trillion roubles. Thus, the volume of assets exceeded debts by almost 2.5 trillion roubles. By June 1, the national debt and reserves were almost equal at around 14.3–14.4 trillion roubles. By July 1, the national debt exceeded deposits by 1.55 trillion roubles.

The publication notes that this situation does not threaten the stability of the budget, but is a “symbolic consequence of the current crisis.” It consists of several factors: coronavirus pandemic, fall in oil prices, and increase in budget spending to support citizens and businesses.