MOSCOW, April 10. /TASS/. The State Duma (lower house of the parliament) will review the report on the work of the Bank of Russia in 2023 presented by Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina at a meeting on Wednesday. Chairman of the Duma’s Financial Markets Committee Anatoly Aksakov is also expected to speak.
Earlier, four Duma’s committees, on the financial market, on budget and taxes, on economic policy and on control, recommended that the lower house take into consideration the report by the Russian Central Bank. In their findings the committees stated that the report contained a detailed analysis of the macroeconomic situation both from the viewpoint of external and internal conditions.
"The committees note that the growth of economic activity positively influences the financial results of companies. In 2023, the balanced financial result in the economy rose by 35.2% after a decline in 2022. In turn, growth of companies’ financial results coupled with an increase in the volume of state investment resulted in an expansion of investment activity in the economy. Fixed investment increased by 9.8% by the end of the year (the highest level over the past five years). The committees believe that it is extremely important for the Bank of Russia together with the Russian government to continue supporting investment activity," the document said.
The committees consider it reasonable, given that the Russian Central Bank expects tight monetary factors to persist for a long period, "to present in the focal point of unified state policy for 2025-2027 the estimation of its influence not only on inflation, but also on economic growth overall, as well as on investment activity, in particular."
The committees stressed that the aftermath of the "shock" of 2022 due to an unprecedented sanctions pressure was passed thanks to anti-crisis measures swiftly taken by the Russian government and the Bank of Russia. "The situation stabilized fairly fast. It is also important to note that the market principles and the openness of the Russian economy remained, which ensured flexibility and the capacity of the system to adjust amid changing environment. In 2023, it is safe to speak about recovery of the Russian financial market and continuation of development of its main segments," deputies of the four committees suggest.
That said, the committees recommend that the Bank of Russia pay attention to the necessity of lowering the risks of growth of households’ debt overburden in microfinance and microcredit organizations. The committees view the work of the Bank of Russia on development of the digital ruble positively. "In 2023, the digital ruble platform began operating and piloting of transactions with real digital rubles started. The committees welcome further development of the digital ruble platform both from the viewpoint of expansion of functional and considering an increase in the number of participants," according to the document.