Consensus forecast of Vedomosti: Central Bank in March will again keep the rate at 7.5%

The Board of Directors of the Bank of Russia at the next meeting, which will be held on Friday, March 17, will leave the key rate at 7.5% per annum, according to the majority of analysts polled by Vedomosti. One out of 16 experts expects it to increase by 0.25 percentage points, four more also do not exclude such an option, along with maintaining the rate at the current level.

Following the results of the first meeting of this year, held on February 10, the Central Bank left the key rate at 7.5%, where it has been since September last year. The regulator’s decision coincided with the forecasts of experts interviewed by Vedomosti: only one out of 15 analysts allowed its increase, but considered it a less likely scenario. In its press release following the meeting, the Bank of Russia noted that the rate of price growth is increasing, but remains moderate in terms of sustainable components. At the same time, household and business inflationary expectations have declined, but remain elevated. Accelerating the execution of budget expenditures, worsening foreign trade conditions and the state of the labor market increase pro-inflationary risks, the regulator pointed out.