Russia’s Inflation and Monetary Policy in April 2015
Russian Economic Developments. Moscow, IEP, 2015, #6, pp. 6-10
5 Pages Posted: 21 Jun 2015
Date Written: June 19, 2015
Abstract
On 30 April 2015, the Bank of Russia reduced the key interest rate from 14% to 12.5% per annum, noting in this connection that the inflation risks had become less pronounced, but that the risks of a more significant cooling of the economy were still there. By all indications, the RF Central Bank believes that any further strengthening of the ruble can hardly be feasible. On 14 May, the RF Central Bank announced that it would once again resort to interventions in the form of foreign exchange purchases in order to replenish its international reserves in the amount of $ 100m–200m per day. Over April 2015, the Consumer Price Index’s growth amounted to 0.5% (vs. 0.9% in April 2014.), which is 0.7 pp. below its March 2015 level. As a result, the inflation index in April 2015 amounted to 16.4% of its April 2014 level, thus having declined for the first time since July 2014. Over the first 25 days of May 2015, the Consumer Price Index’s growth rate dwindled to 0.3%.
Keywords: Russian Economy, inflation, monetary policy
JEL Classification: P24, E52
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation