Putin called high inflation one of the main problems of the Russian economy

High inflation is one of the main problems of the Russian economy. This was announced on May 13 by Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with members of Delovaya Rossiya.

"One of the main problems of today's Russian economy is high inflation, and the difficult task here is to keep inflation down and not create conditions <...> so as not to freeze the economy itself," Putin said.

According to the president, it is necessary to carry out a "soft landing" of the economy, which will allow achieving a situation in which the Central Bank of the Russian Federation will lower the key rate.

Three steps back: the market expects the key rate to decrease to only 19% by the end of 2025

When will the Central Bank start reducing it and why will it do it gradually

On April 25, the Board of Directors of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation decided to keep the key rate at 21% per annum. The Chairman of the Bank of Russia, Elvira Nabiullina, said on the same day that maintaining the key rate for 2025 in the range of 19.5–21.5% means that monetary policy can be both softened and strengthened. However, according to her, the first option is most likely against the background of a steady strengthening of the ruble since March.