Russia's National Wealth Fund up 390 bln rubles to 13.704 trln rubles in Aug, liquid assets 4.8% of GDP
MOSCOW. Sept 6 (Interfax) - Russia's National Wealth Fund or NWF totaled around 13.704 trillion rubles as of September 1 and was the equivalent of $142.853 billion, or 9.1% of forecast GDP for 2023, the Finance Ministry said in a statement.
The fund totaled about 13.313 trillion rubles as of August 1, the equivalent of $146.337 billion, or 8.9% of forecast GDP for 2023, meaning that it increased by 390.15 billion rubles during August.
Some of the NWF money on accounts with the Central Bank of Russia - 385.2 million yuan and 570.2 kilograms of unallocated gold - was sold for 8.3o8 billion rubles in August, down from 44.358 billion rubles in July, with the proceeds credited to the federal budget's single account in order to finance the deficit.
The NWF's liquid assets were the equivalent of 7.252 trillion rubles as of September 1, or $75.594 billion and 4.8% of forecast GDP for 2023.
The amount of funds in euros on separate NWF accounts with the Bank of Russia fell to 5.24 billion euros from 7.278 billion euros. Accounts also held 279.774 billion yuan, 508.265 tonnes of unallocated gold and 6.776 billion rubles.
The exchange rate difference on the balance of the fund's assets denominated in foreign currency was 1.207 trillion rubles and in gold it was 973.011 billion rubles; the difference on funds placed in Eurobonds of Ukraine was 76.772 billion rubles, and on securities of Russian issuers associated with self-sustaining infrastructure projects and denominated in foreign currency it was 52.597 billion rubles.
Deposits with VEB.RF held 656.583 billion rubles. A total of $3 billion had been invested in Ukrainian Eurobonds. Another 862.315 billion rubles and $1.944 billion were invested in securities from Russian issuers associated with self-sustaining infrastructure projects, 328.992 billion rubles in the preferred shares of banks, 38.434 billion rubles on a subordinated deposit in Gazprombank to finance self-sustaining infrastructure projects, 2.997 trillion rubles in ordinary shares of Sberbank and in ordinary shares of VTB 168.598 billion rubles, Aeroflot - 104.112 billion, DOM.RF - 137 billion rubles and preferred shares of RZD - 467 billion rubles, in ordinary shares of GTLK - 58.334 billion rubles, Ural Airlines bonds - 2.299 billion rubles, LLC NLK-Finance bonds 97.015 billion rubles and LLC VK bonds - 60 billion rubles.
The financial result from depositing NWF funds in FX accounts with the Bank of Russia converted into dollars for the period December 15, 2022 to August 31, 2023 was $87.11 million or 8.354 billion rubles.
Returns on investing NWF assets other than those on Bank of Russia accounts in permitted foreign currencies and gold in 2023 are 331.821 billion rubles or the equivalent of $3.93 billion.