Russia makes progress in quelling financial crisis: Minister
December 25, 2014, 1:42 pm

Russia’s consumer prices have risen by as much as 1.7 per cent since early December, according to Russia’s state statistics body [Xinhua]

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov on Thursday told the Federation Council, the upper house of the country’s parliament, that the ruble was strengthening although rising inflation in 2014 will hit 11.5 per cent.

“The key rate was raised in order to stabilize the situation on the currency market. … The ruble is now strengthening,” Siluanov said.

“But the main thing is that we should use the next year to take necessary decisions on improving and balancing the budgets of 2016-2017 and subsequent years,” he added.

The ruble has seen a 47 per cent rebound since it plunged to a record-low 80.10 per dollar on December 16.

Russia’s consumer prices have risen by as much as 1.7 per cent since early December, according to Russia’s state statistics body.

Meanwhile, the Finance Minister said Russia’s budget deficit will be larger than 0.6 per cent of GDP in 2015.

“One year with a deficit is not a frightening thing. The most important thing is to bring our commitments in line with our new possibilities,” said Siluanov.

Foreign reserves fell by $15.7 billion in the week of December 13-19 to $398.9 billion, the Central Bank of Russia said on Thursday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with the government on Thursday that the threat to the Russian economy was not only owing to Western sanctions but “internal mistakes”.

“The hardships we are facing are not only external, they are caused not only by the sanctions restrictions or by restrictions linked with the objective international situation, they are also caused by our mistakes that have been made over the years,” Putin was quoted by Tass news agency.

TBP and Agencies