MOSCOW, July 3 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's foreign debt fell by $8.4 billion to $475.1 billion in the first six months of 2009, the Central Bank said on Friday.
The Central Bank said financial institutions had made the largest contribution to reducing the overall debt, lowering their debts by $23.9 billion to $142.4 billion.
Amid declining credit terms on foreign loan markets, Russian banks were not refinancing but discharging their debts.
By contrast, the non-financial sector saw its foreign debt rise $10 billion to $294.4 billion.
The Russian government's debt fell by $1.8 billion to $27.7 billion in the reporting period.
The debt inherited from the former Soviet Union was down to $4.4 billion from $4.6 billion.
