Belarus's public debt reaches $15bn

• 1.02.2013, 8:50

The public debt of Belarus was 128.8 trillion Belarusian rubles on January 1, 2013.

It is approximately $15 billion, the country's Ministry of Finance reports. The public debt rose 10.6% in 2012.

According to the Ministry of Finance, the growth of the public debt in 2012 was caused by the increase in the domestic debt, which rose by 8 trillion Belarusian rubles in 2012 ($934m) and reached 25.8 trillion Belarusian rubles (about $3bn) on January 1. The ministry says the domestic debt went up due to the issue of government bonds.

The external debt rose by $209.9m and reached $12bn on January 1, 2013. The Ministry of Finance notes: “Despite the loans taken by Belarus from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the EurAsEC Anticrisis Fund and Chinese banks the increase in the external public debt since the beginning of the year 2012 is inconsiderable thanks to the repayment of part of the principal debt in the IMF standby loan and the redemption of the maiden issue of Belarusian bonds, which had been floated in Russia.”