MOSCOW, August 9. /TASS/. The shift to a lower inflation target in Russia from the current 4% will take several years, Deputy Governor of the Bank of Russia Alexey Zabotkin said in an interview with Izvestiya daily, adding that an increase in the targeted level is not under consideration.

"It will take several years," he said when asked when the shift to a lower inflation level may occur.

"The Bank of Russia is not considering the possibility of raising the inflation target as it will be perceived both by citizens and business as a price stability threat," Zabotkin added.

Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina said earlier that the regulator plans first of all to work on stabilizing inflation at the level of 4% and only then consider the inflation target change.

The Bank of Russia released a report for public consultations on its monetary policy in the spring, in which it said that it saw the potential for reducing the inflation target from the current 4% in the future, adding though that the terms required additional analysis and an in-depth discussion. When preparing the report the regulator pointed out several factors highlighting the space for reducing the inflation target in the future, noting that inflation expectations in Russia did not pose hurdle for reducing the inflation target, whereas reaching the effective lower bound and zero lower bound by the key rate in present-day conditions was not a major issue for the Russian economy in choosing the inflation target.