the key rate will not soon be able to stop the growth of nominal wages – Kommersant

Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov in interview Kommersant stated that inflation and nominal wages in Russia are growing rapidly due to a labor shortage. At the same time, according to him, the key rate will be able to restrain this growth due to a sharp rise in the cost of loans, which, among other things, are based on nominal salaries, but not in the near future.

“Where does inflation come from? We see that nominal wages are growing by 13–14%. Why is it growing? Labor shortage. Can the key rate stop the growth of nominal wages? In principle it can. But not very soon,” said Andrei Belousov.

“Because to a large extent, nominal wages, like all production, rely on loans. But there really is a problem with loans,” added the Deputy Prime Minister. According to him, loans are growing by double digits on average by 20–25%, with growth for some types of loans reaching 30%. “And this, of course, is a lot,” he noted.

On December 15, at a regular meeting, the board of directors of the Central Bank decided to increase the key rate to 16%. The regulator has been increasing the rate since July. Then this figure was increased to 8.5%, in August – to 12%. Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank Alexey Zabotkin saidthat it is necessary to keep the key rate at a high level for a long time. At the same time, he admitted that it could be lowered in 2024.

More details in the interview “I think we will find a balance point”.

Anastasia Larina