As we approach the New Year festivities, we are filled with the holiday spirit. It is time of new hopes, good news and solemn promises. Apparently, for fear of spoiling the holiday mood, Russia’s Ministry of Economic Development found a way to improve their forecasts for the Russian ruble.
Deputy Minister of Economic Development Alexei Vedev stated that in 2017 “the ruble will be stable.” “The economy has already adapted to the new price range, I mean, commodity price range. Of course, oil prices has the greatest impact on the budget and, correspondingly, on the exchange rate. In 2017, we expect a stable ruble with some signs of strengthening amid steady current account surplus and moderate capital outflow,” Vedev said, speaking at the conference organized by the CCI France Russie.
Basically, if at the beginning of 2017, the ruble suddenly falls to 70 against the US dollar and steadies at this level throughout all year, then technically the Deputy Minister is right. The course will be stable indeed.
