Interview of Minister for Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation G.O.Gref, Rossiya TV Channel, GOOD MORNING, RUSSIA show, 15.09.2005
Rossiya TV Channel, GOOD MORNING, RUSSIA, 15/09/2005
ANCHOR: Rising global prices for black gold, as you know, have an impact on the Russian fuel market as well. The head of Economic Development and Trade Ministry German Gref in an exclusive interview to our programme has commented the situation and outlined the measures the government plans to introduce to curb the petrol price hikes.
German GREF, RF Minister for Economic Development and Trade: The measures to be introduced can only be taxation-stimulating in their nature; administrative measures would be inappropriate here. Quite a few politicians call for some hard, administrative restraints. What such measures lead to when introduced we can see in a great number of countries, with Ukraine being a case in point. And if we resort to such hard leverage - we are told the government must flex its muscle - it's all very well to flex your muscle, but I am afraid the muscle-flexing will be followed by lines at the petrol stations, which is a no-no.
ANCHOR: According to the minister, the government has on the drawing board a package of instruments of customs, tariff and fiscal policy, which will make it possible for oil companies to sell petrol in Russia's domestic market with a profit margin and without raising the prices.
German GREF: There are no easy solutions here, but all the solutions, all the leverage we have at our disposal in order to ensure a full-value offer in the marketplace for petroleum products in this country, to prevent any queues, for standard quality petroleum products to be provided, and at the same time in order to curb the rising prices, we shall make use of all these devices. I expect that before the year is out we shall see the petroleum product market settle down.
ANCHOR: Incidentally, both oil and petroleum products as basic economy drivers, according to the minister, will very soon push aside other sectors such as communications, services and mechanical engineering. They have been recently demonstrating excellent growth dynamics.
German GREF: But as yet no other driver, with such reliable and dynamic performance, is available in the economy except oil, and it is in the government's medium-term programme that we have assigned such clear-cut priorities as we need to follow in the next three years in order to make possible for such sources of economic growth to come into being. I believe that we are quite equal to the challenge.
