Press Release No. 05/19

Press Release: Russian Federation Completes Early Repayment of Entire Outstanding Obligations to the IMF

February 2, 2005

On January 31, 2005, the Russian Federation completed the early repayment of its entire outstanding obligations to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) amounting to SDR 2.19 billion (about US$3.33 billion). The outstanding obligations of Russia had all been contracted under the Extended Arrangement that was approved by the Executive Board on March 26, 1996 (see Press Release No. 96/13).

Mr. Rodrigo de Rato, the Managing Director of the IMF, commended the Russian authorities for their economic achievements over the last several years, noting that "Russia's ability to repay the IMF ahead of schedule reflects its strong fiscal and balance of payments position against a background of high oil prices. I also welcome the news that Russia has met Special Data Dissemination Standard requirements and has thus become the 60^th subscriber to the SDDS."

Total drawings under the SDR 13.21 billion (about US$20.08 billion) Extended Arrangement were equivalent to SDR 5.78 billion (about US$8.79 billion). Under the original schedule, the final repayment of outstanding loans from the IMF would have taken place in 2008.