The Accounting Chamber will assess the impact of the key rate on the Russian economy

This year, the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation will assess the impact of the Central Bank's key rate on the economy and budget expenditures. This was announced on March 20 by the chairman of the Joint Venture Boris Kovalchuk.

"The audit plan of our department for 2025 includes an expert and analytical event <...> related to the analysis of the impact of changes in the key rate on inflation," he said during a speech at a plenary session of the State Duma.

He clarified that from June 2023 to December 2024, the Central Bank's key rate increased 2.8 times. According to him, this affects investments in fixed assets. Kovalchuk added that a significant decrease in investments in fixed assets is expected, due to the high cost of loans.

At the same time, the chairman of the Joint Venture of the Russian Federation noted that the cost of servicing the national debt in the Russian budget law is provided for in the amount of 3.2 trillion. This is almost 1 trillion more than the previous law.

"The most important thing is that the inflation figures that were predicted were not met. In January 2025, we also see dynamics that exceed the federal budget figures in terms of inflation expectations," concluded Kovalchuk.

An interesting story: the authorities spent a record 2 trillion on servicing the national debt.

Why do we have to spend more and more money on this and are there any risks for the economy in this?

Elena Akhmedova, Chief Economist at Euler Analytical Technologies, told Izvestia on March 7 that the Central Bank may reduce the key rate to 19% by the end of 2025. According to her, the indicator will remain at the current level for most of the year.