MOSCOW, February 3. /TASS/. Russia's 1% GDP growth last year was the result of the government and the Central Bank's actions, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said.
"The one percent growth is primarily due to the implementation of both a tight monetary policy and a tight fiscal policy, as well as inflation targeting. And it should be noted that this objective is being achieved, given that inflation was 9.5% last year, while we reached 5.6% by the end of the year. This is significantly lower than the forecast of 6.8%. However, if we look at the final months, November and December, on an annualized basis, taking seasonal adjustments into account, inflation will be around 1.2% and 0.6%, respectively, that is below the Central Bank's target," he said at a meeting of the Federation Council Economic Policy Committee.
Structural changes are very important for the economy because the growth potential that existed before, including due to the demographic situation and foreign trade, has been exhausted, Novak added.
"Structurally, in order to ensure higher growth at the level of the world average and to ensure the sustainability of our country, occupying fourth place today in terms of purchasing power parity, it is necessary to engage in these structural changes that should ensure sustainable economic growth," he stressed.