Belarus expects Russian gas price reduction in 2012

"Unfortunately, this year we get gas from Russia at top prices. We hope that next year the price will be about 15% lower," said Sergei Rumas.

During the phone-in meeting Sergei Rumas was asked about 20 questions, most of them dealing with conditions of housing construction loans, including preferential conditions, the foreign exchange market situation, higher prices for housing and utilities services, higher prices for automobile fuel.

As far as prices for housing and utilities services are concerned, they have been increased by $5 on the average. Yet households cover roughly 35% of the cost, one of the lowest figures in Belarus over the last ten years.

Citizens were also interested in an increase in salaries and pensions. Sergei Rumas said that the matter of pension increase will be considered by the government at the end of the year, thus covering an increase in tariffs on housing and utilities services; Kazinform cites BelTA.

See www.news.belta.by/en