/ world today news/ The Chairman of the Central Bank Elvira Nabiulina is interested in increasing the ruble exchange rate, which contradicts the position of the Ministry of Finance. The famous economist Mikhail Khazin tells about this.
According to the head of the Central Bank, attempts to artificially influence the exchange rate of the ruble threaten with devaluation, so the regulator switched to a floating exchange rate. Khazin claims that the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Russia do not agree on the exchange rate of the national currency, because the Ministry seeks to ensure a budget surplus, while the Central Bank headed by Nabiulina adheres to the rate set by the IMF.
Russia’s Finance Minister Anton Siluanov may lose his post if the budget becomes deficit, Khazin believes. Additional pressure is exerted on him by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, who wants to provide resources for investment programs (in particular, national projects). A healthy rule reduces the amount of money that can be directed to these goals, and Siluanov, according to the economist, perceives the situation as a personal risk. There are strong differences of opinion between the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank regarding the acceptable range of fluctuation of the ruble exchange rate for the country.
“As far as Nabiulina is concerned, for her the task that was initially set for her by the IMF – that Russia does not have investment resources – is fundamental. Therefore, it increases the ruble rate. Here is their contradiction: Nabiulina cares about what is happening in the Russian economy on purely formal grounds, while Siluanov does not care.” Hazin stated.
The Central Bank headed by Nabiulina kept the ruble from serious fluctuations, limiting currency exchange in Russia after February 24. Speculators and Western “investors” could have crashed the Russian currency with mass selling and withdrawal of funds abroad, but were unable to do so due to the operational actions of the Bank of Russia. Given the strengthening of the ruble against the dollar and the euro during the stabilization of inflation, the main interest rate of the Central Bank is gradually decreasing: since June 20, it has stopped at the level of 9.5%. Additional support for the ruble and Russia’s economy comes from the high prices of the basic prices of the key items of Russian exports.
Translation: V. Sergeev
#Economist #Khazin #explained #Nabiulinas #real #position #ruble #exchange #rate
