The Central Bank of the Russian Federation, following a meeting of the board of directors on Friday, March 20, decided to maintain the key rate at 6%. This is stated in the message of the regulator.
“In the future, the Central Bank will make decisions at a key rate taking into account the actual and expected dynamics of inflation relative to the target, the development of the economy on the forecast horizon, and also assessing risks from internal and external conditions and the reaction of financial markets to them”, the release notes.
Most analysts interviewed by Banks.ru expected that the key rate would be maintained at the next meeting. Further decisions of the Central Bank about the monetary policy will depend on the spread of COVID-19 and the dynamics of oil prices, so experts do not risk forecasting the rate path before the end of the year.
This is the second meeting of the Board of Directors of the Bank of Russia at a key rate this year. At the previous meetings held on February 8, March 22 and April 26, 2019, the Central Bank did not change the key rate, and on June 14, July 26, September 6, October 25, December 13, 2019 and February 7, 2020 decided to lower it.
In 2018, the regulator tightened monetary policy twice: in September and December. So the Central Bank reacted to possible threats to financial stability and the risks of accelerating inflation, explained the Chairman of the Central Bank Elvira Nabiullina.
The next meeting of the board of directors of the Central Bank, which will consider the issue of the key rate level, is scheduled for April 24.
Source: www.banki.ru
