MOSCOW ? The departure of Russia's influential finance minister and the impending power swap between President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin won't have any immediate impact on Russia's economic policies or its debt rating, Standard & Poor's said Tuesday.
The U.S. ratings agency was one of the few calm voices that sought to play down the importance of the resignation of Alexei Kudrin, who has been Russia's finance minister since 2000.
Investors and analysts warned that it would be hard to find a replacement who would be as effective in vehemently opposing the populist spending so beloved by politicians.
Kudrin was forced out Monday after a public spat with Medvedev after Kudrin refused to serve in any government if Medvedev was prime minister. Many suspect Kudrin had hoped himself to be named prime minister under Putin.
A darling of investors and post-Soviet Russia's longest-serving finance minister, Kudrin was widely credited with softening the blow of the 2008-2009 global downturn in Russia with his conservative fiscal policies. During Putin's presidency from 2000 to 2008, Kudrin set up a rainy day fund to stash some of the revenue from oil exports. The idea angered many in the government who sought higher spending, but ultimately proved to be an invaluable cushion.
S&P said in an emailed statement that recent days' events would unlikely mean a "significant departure from current economic and fiscal policies." The agency said it expects "Russian state capitalism and the close links between politics and business to remain unchanged."
The agency, however, voiced concern that a government reshuffle could make it difficult for Russia to "consolidate public finances" and boost long-term growth by "improving the business environment, competition, and the productive infrastructure."
Russia markets, buoyed by higher oil prices and surging stocks worldwide, seemingly paid no heed to the landmark resignation. The MICEX benchmark index was up 2.5 percent at 4 p.m. Moscow time (1200 GMT) and the ruble was 0.8 percent higher.
In another landmark reform under Kudrin, Russia introduced flat income tax and scrapped sales tax. The 50-year-old minister was also the driving force behind Russia's efforts to pay off its international debts, reducing the country's debt from equal to Russia's annual GDP to zero.
Boosted by strong oil prices and Kudrin's prudent fiscal policies, Russia did not run a single budget deficit from 2000 through 2008.
Despite the S&P statement, analysts warned that Russian financial policies will be affected since Kudrin's authority in Russia is unparalleled.
Sergei Guriev, a prominent economist and rector of the New Economic School, told Gazeta.ru that Kudrin has three "unique qualities."
"He's a professional, he can defend his principles and he enjoys good relations with the prime minister," Guriev said. "It's going to be hard to find a person who would have all of these qualities."
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