Russia could go broke in next year
The Russian government is ploughing through its foreign exchange reserves at such a fast rate that it could use up its rainy day fund by 2017, government officials have claimed.
Despite being a major oil-producing nation, pension pots may have to be raided to cover budget shortfalls, on which much of the reserve funds have already been spent.
Russia's economy has been in recession for nearly two years as oil prices have slumped and Western sanctions – imposed in protest at the Russian intervention in Ukraine – have bitten hard.
“The Reserve Fund, as I remember, will be used up over the next year," Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Lavrov told reporters.
International analysts agree. "At the current rate, the fund would be depleted in mid-2017, perhaps a few months later," sai...