MOSCOW, June 24 (RIA Novosti) - Inflation in Russia in 2006 will be at 9%, the country's deputy prime minister said on Ekho Moskvy radio Saturday.

Alexander Zhukov said inflation in 2007 would be at 8%.

Zhukov also said that the federal budget's surplus would decrease but said fears that the budget would run at deficit were groundless.

He said the surplus would be 4.5% of gross domestic product in 2007 (against this year's 6.4%), 3.5% of the GDP in 2008, and 2.5% in 2009.