The beginning of this year was characterized by a slow increase in consumer prices, stability in the forex market, and continuing monetary policy easing. However, the situation has changed dramatically as a result of the impact on the economy of two major interconnected shocks: a slowdown in the...

On 15 January 2015, the Bank of Russia Board of Directors decided to reduce the key rate by 2 pp., to 15% per annum, due to the shift in the balance of risks of accelerated consumer price growth and an economic cool-down. In January 2015, the Consumer Price Index increased by 3.9% (vs. 0.6% in...

In 2016, the Bank of Russia implemented a conservative monetary policy aimed at mitigating inflation. Commercial banks decreased their demand for central bank refinancing as the Reserve Fund was spent, in which case the central bank had to employ a set of instruments to prevent an increase in...

On 30 April 2015, the Bank of Russia reduced the key interest rate from 14% to 12.5% per annum, noting in this connection that the inflation risks had become less pronounced, but that the risks of a more significant cooling of the economy were still there. By all indications, the RF Central Bank...

Due to a shift in the balance of risks towards a more significant cooling of the economy, at the Bank of Russia Board of Directors' meeting on 13 March 2015 it was decided that the key interest rate should be reduced by 1 p.p. – to 14% per annum. In March 2015, the Consumer Price Index's...

Due to the fact that the balance of risks has moved towards a substantial cooling down of the economy, the Bank of Russia Board of Directors decided at its regular meeting on 13 March 2015 to lower by 1 p.p. the key interest rate to 14% p.a. In February 2015, the Consumer Price Index stood at...

Due to the turmoil in the foreign exchange market, the Bank of Russia lifted on the 16th of December the key interest rate up to 17% p.a. in an effort to stop the ruble's rapid depreciation. In December 2014, the consumer price index stood at 2.6% (0.5% in December 2013 ), up 1.3 p.p. above the...

In November 2014, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) amounted to 1.3% (vs. 0.6% in November 2013), which is 0.5 p.p. above its value recorded in October. In response to the mounting panic in the foreign exchange market, from 16 December the Bank of Russia raised its key interest rate to 17% per...

The consumer price index stood at 0.8% in October 2014 (0.6% in October 2013), 0.1 p.p. higher than the value observed in September. As a result, inflation boosted up to 8.3% at an annualized rate. The consumer price index reached 1.0% as of the 24th day of November. The Bank of Russia decided...

In June, the Russian Central Bank, for the first time since summer 2015, decided to reduce the key interest rate by 0.5 percentage points, to 10.5%. The decline in inflation expectations, further slowdown in inflation and stabilization of the external environment, together with the...