The Bank delegates some services to private financial institutions to make payments for public pensions and government workers' salaries, as well as to provide services related to receipts and payments of treasury funds, including receipts of taxes.
The data for the first half of the year confirm a decline in crude oil and natural gas production of 7.8 and 1.4 per cent respectively, compared with the corresponding period of last year. As you know, there has been a secular decline in crude oil production since 2006, reflecting the maturation of our oil fields.