In the first six months of 2023, total budget expenditure rose to almost 15 trillion rubles (€142.3 billion), an increase of 2.5 trillion rubles (€23.7 billion) on the previous year, with defence spending responsible for almost the entire difference, economic analyst Boris Grozovsky says. The Russian government has simultaneously increased military spending while decreasing spending in other sectors, which is “why budget statistics are no longer being released,” Grozovsky added.
Thank the Saudis for that. Since the start of the invasion, the Saudis have been coordinating with Russia in decreasing output to drive oil prices high.
The US has been subsidising the domestic demand/prices by releasing from its strategic reserves, but last I heard this are about run dry.
The Saudis need the money, due to having to diversify their economy. MBS is starting to take out the Wahhabi elite, but it can backfire. So he needs to pacifiy the crowd. So we see Ronaldo and co going to Saudi Arabia, massive construction projects lining the country and other other massive spending programs. So the Saudis need a high oil price. Pissing of the US is just a nice thing to do, as they did not protect them against Iran, when they attacked a refinery a few years back.
The best thing to happen, would be a massive economic crisis in China with a strong push towards EVs in the West and especially in the US. It might happen, but right now it looks like Chinas demand is not falling as fast as expected and well the US loves to drive cars as big as WW2 tanks.
https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=MCSSTUS1&f=M
According to this, since February 2022, when the invasion started, it’s fallen by 40%. That’s significant, but not exactly running dry at this point.
Not to mention that’s just the strategic reserves. Thanks to shale fracking, the US is the largest petroleum producing country in the world, and that isn’t likely to change any time soon.
It’s in MbS’ interests that his golf buddy/useful idiot Trump wins the presidential election. As such, we can expect oil prices to keep increasing until November 2024, on the theory that significant proportions of Americans will vote against the incumbent primarily out of hip-pocket pain at the pump.
Good we should get off the rock juice and move to smarter energy sources
There are more … controlled ways to do that than in the middle of a war.