S&P experts recalculated Moscow's cash cushion

As of July 1, 2021, Moscow had accumulated about 940 billion rubles. monetary reserves, was assessed by the international rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) in a review for August 6. In the remaining months of the year, S&P forecasts that the capital could spend about half of these funds to support an increased level of budget spending after using market borrowings raised this year.

Moscow's reserves consist of its own funds (about 440 billion rubles) and funds from city budgetary institutions (about 500 billion rubles), S&P disclosed. “We expect the city to completely exhaust its own reserves this year. At the same time, the cash of budgetary institutions will remain as a liquidity buffer,” the agency writes. Therefore, the liquidity situation will remain comfortable for at least the next year - to cover the potential deficit, Moscow will always be able to turn to the cash cushion of its state unitary enterprises and institutions, S&P added.

At the same time, S&P confirmed Moscow's long-term credit rating at BBB- with a stable outlook, the same level as Russia's sovereign rating.

"Pillow" of state unitary enterprises

“Our treasury support includes account balances of all our institutions, these are schools, hospitals and others, including large enterprises such as the Moscow Metro and Mosgortrans. This is the liquidity that we can use to cover the operating deficit. This current liquidity is more than enough to exist quietly until the end of autumn, ”Vladimir Yefimov, deputy mayor of Moscow for economic policy, said in an April interview with REUTERS.