Putin rejects US
‘easy money’ stimulus in Russia, says reforms needed
Russia must be careful with any
monetary stimulus, and can’t be injecting billions
into the economy to make it grow, as the US has been
doing, President said at VTB’s Russia Calling
Investment forum.
Russia plans to increase internal
debt, but will go about it more carefully than the
US, so it doesn’t hurt the real economic sector.
"Domestic debt will increase,
because it's at a record low level. But we'll
proceed carefully," Putin said. "We
need to improve our growth not by means of monetary
injections, but by structural reforms."
This was Putin’s answer to a
question on whether Russia is going to provide
special support for the country’s financial markets
at a time when access to foreign long-term borrowing
is curtailed by sanctions.
The President outlined that Russia’s
budget for the next three years will continue with a
more prudent approach to debt.
"The federal budget of 2015 and of
2016-2017, which the government has presented to the
State Duma, proposes a rather moderate deficit, just
0.5-0.6 percent of GDP, with the base price of crude
oil set at $96 per barrel. These are stable basic
parameters which allow strict compliance with all
budget liabilities, including social ones," Putin
said.
Western sanctions have blocked
several Russian companies from long-term borrowing
on EU and US capital markets, which many state and
private companies rely on. In response, the Russian
government has pledged to dip into the Reserve Fund
to provide financial aid to those hit by the
sanctions. (Taken from Russia Today)