MOSCOW, July 12. /TASS/. Russia is approaching the baseline level of oil and gas revenues set in the budget, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told reporters on Wednesday.
"The dollar had the price increase; oil prices declined. Therefore, if looking at the amount of oil and gas revenues - by the way, the gas price also dropped - we are now approaching, so to say, the base level of oil and gas revenues addressed in the budget," the minister said.
The ministry expects to meet the federal budget target of oil and gas and other than oil and gas revenues this year, Siluanov said earlier.
According to preliminary data of the Finance Ministry, oil and gas revenues of the Russian budget plummeted in January - June by 47% year on year to 3.38 trillion rubles ($37.3 bln), driven down by the high comparison base of the last year, the price drop for the Urals oil blend, and the decline in prices and volumes of natural gas exports.