Bank of Russia allows seasonal price decline in August-September – Kommersant

Deputy Chairman of the Bank of Russia Alexei Zabotkin said that the regulator does not rule out a temporary reduction in prices in late summer and early autumn.

“A seasonal decline in the general price index at the end of summer – beginning of autumn happens quite often and may happen this year as well,” Mr. Zabotkin said on the sidelines of the Financial Congress of the Bank of Russia (quoted from TASS).

Since the beginning of last week, the euro and the dollar have accelerated growth against the ruble. Yesterday, July 6, at the beginning of trading on the Moscow Exchange, the dollar rose to 93.85 rubles / $, the euro – up to 102.01 rubles / €. At the end of trading, the dollar was worth 92.30 rubles/$, and the euro was 100 rubles/€. The ruble has been falling for the ninth week in a row.

Head of the Bank of Russia Elvira Nabiullina acknowledgedthat the weakening of the ruble carries pro-inflationary risks for Russia, and the Central Bank will take the situation into account when deciding on the key rate (now it is 7.5%). The next meeting of the Central Bank will be held on July 21.

Car dealers, manufacturers and experts considerthat due to the weakening of the ruble, new cars will rise in price by an average of 5–10%. As found out “b”, home appliance and electronics manufacturers are also expecting a 10-15% rise in purchase prices across a range of brands. In addition, due to the ruble exchange rate by 10% may rise in price imported alcohol.

In 2022, deflation in Russia fixed within three months – from the beginning of July to the end of September.

St. Petersburg is hosting the Financial Congress of the Bank of Russia, an annual event dedicated to trends at the intersection of economics and finance. The rapid depreciation of the ruble since the beginning of July 2023, without landmark events easily explaining the situation, was the main subject of questions for the leadership of the Central Bank. One of the main topics of the congress is also inflation targeting of the regulator.

More about the congress – in the publication “Kommersant” “At the rate, it doesn’t matter”.

Erdni Kagaltynov