Russia's Wealth Fund Grows to $210.6 Bln

Data from Russia's Ministry of Finance showed that the value of the Russian Wealth Fund (NWF), which accumulates profits from the country's oil revenues, amounted to $210.6 billion as of July 1, up from $197.7 billion in the previous month.

The ministry said the National Wealth Fund also bought 50 billion rubles ($797.87 million) of Gazprom Bank's preferred shares in June, according to Reuters.

It is worth noting that the Russian authorities are planning to use money from the Russian Wealth Fund in difficult times as a major source of financing for the budget deficit seen this year.