MOSCOW, March 22 (Xinhua) -- The Russian central bank on Friday decided to keep the key interest rate unchanged at 16 percent per annum, according to a bank statement.
It said that current inflation pressure in Russia is gradually weakening, but remains high.
The Bank of Russia predicts that, under the existing monetary policy, annual inflation will decrease to 4-4.5 percent in 2024 and stabilize at around 4 percent in subsequent years.
Since July last year, the central bank began to raise the key rate to combat accelerating inflation. In December last year, the central bank increased the key interest rate from 15 percent to 16 percent. In February, the regulator kept the rate at the current level for the first time since June last year. ■
