Nabiullina told what is better to store savings

Advice from the head of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation on the best way to safeguard one's savings was given to the Russians.

Zabotkin, the Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank, evaluated the rate of depreciation of the ruble.

For the sixth consecutive time, the Bank of Russia maintained its key rate on Friday.

At the upcoming meetings, the regulator cautioned of a potential rate hike.

Elvira Nabiullina, the head of the Bank of Russia, suggested that it is more beneficial to store savings in the national currency. She explained that this would help maintain the ruble's purchasing power, as the Central Bank is dedicated to maintaining price stability.

Elena Nabiullina reminded that the ruble exchange rate is variable, and thus is affected by a range of elements, including the external economic environment. In the autumn of 2021, she confessed that she keeps her own funds in Russian rubles. Otherwise, she declared, it would be "unethical."

Alexei Zabotkin, Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank, suggested that the best way to assess the current ruble exchange rate against the dollar is to compare it to the rate at the start of 2022. In this regard, the ruble has only depreciated by 11% against the dollar and 5% against the euro.

He argued that it was not accurate to claim that the ruble had significantly weakened due to the events of the past eighteen months.

For the sixth consecutive time, the Bank of Russia maintained its key rate at 7.5% per annum on Friday. The regulator acknowledged the potential of raising the rate at future meetings in order to stabilize inflation at 4% or higher by 2024 and beyond, due to the increasing pro-inflationary risks.

At a press conference, the head of the Central Bank reported that in April, 41% of Russian exports were paid in rubles. She also mentioned that the largest exporters sold around 78% of their foreign exchange earnings from January to April, and the shift to national currencies in trade is still ongoing. Nevertheless, there are some issues with calculations in Indian rupees.

Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the State Duma committee on the financial market, emphasized the importance of reducing the rate in the near future in order to stimulate lending and aid the economy in adjusting to new conditions.

In May 2023, Russian banks issued a record amount of retail loans, showing an increase in both mortgage and non-mortgage lending activity, according to Alfa-Bank.