MOSCOW, November 9. /TASS/. Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina does not rule out another key rate hike this year.
"The rate may remain at this level this year, though there may be another increase as well," she said addressing the State Duma (lower house of the parliament). "But later as inflation goes down we say that we will start reducing the rate next year," Nabiullina added.
Earlier, the regulator explained that annual inflation would decline next spring as households’ saving activity rises as a result of higher rates.
The Central Bank’s board of directors raised the key rate by 2 percentage points to 15% per annum at a meeting in October, noting a significant increase in the current inflation pressure. The Bank of Russia also upgraded its inflation outlook for 2023 to 7-7.5% from 6-7% projected previously. The regulator expects annual inflation to fall to 4-4.5% in 2024 and to remain close to 4% in the future considering its monetary policy.