MOSCOW, November 19. /TASS/. The Russian economy is at a turning point, and a slowdown in inflation can be expected in the coming months, said Bank of Russia Chairwoman Elvira Nabiullina said at the State Duma, the lower house of parliament.
"We are now at a turning point. According to the estimates by banks and enterprises, in the coming months we can expect a general slowdown in the growth of the corporate loan portfolio, a decrease in the contribution to the growth of aggregate demand. <…> This will lead to a slowdown in current inflation, and then we will see a turnaround in the annual inflation indicator. This will be confirmation that our monetary policy has finally reached the required rigidity to curb price growth, taking into account all the circumstances that affect inflation," the head of the regulator said.
Commenting on the opinion that the increase in the key rate only accelerates price growth because it provokes an increase in expenses on loans, Nabiullina noted: "This is a profound misconception. The key rate effectively counteracts inflation. If we had left the rate at the level it was until the middle of last year - let me remind you, it was 7.5% - then inflation would not have been just double-digit, it could have easily reached 20-30%, and quite possibly even more."