News Brief No. 98/39

News Brief: IMF Mission Considers Russian Budget A Priority

October 30, 1998

An IMF mission held discussions with the Government and the Central Bank of the Russian Federation during the period from October 20 to 30 on their plans for addressing Russia’s pressing economic difficulties. The mission met on several occasions with First Deputy Prime Minister Maslyukov, head of the Russian negotiating team, and held extensive discussions with senior Russian officials.

The IMF mission, working closely with its World Bank colleagues, made further progress in clarifying issues and policy choices in a number of areas, building upon the discussions which took place in the second half of September in Moscow and which continued in Washington during the time of the IMF annual meeting in early October. The mission provided its recommendations to the authorities regarding an appropriate set of policies through 1999 and commented extensively on preliminary proposals by government. While there was a common view on the desirable objectives for economic policy through the end of next year, the necessary policy measures are still under consideration in important areas. A priority in coming weeks is the elaboration of a realistic budget for 1999. The IMF mission stands ready to return to Moscow to resume the discussions on the contents of such a policy program which could be supported by the international community.