MOSCOW, June 9 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of Russia on Friday decided to keep the key interest rate at 7.5 percent per annum amid growing inflationary pressure.
"Inflation expectations of households and businesses' price expectations remain high. Economic activity is rising faster than the Bank of Russia's April forecast assumed, which in large measure reflects a strong rebound in domestic demand," the central bank said in a press release.
Given the gradually rising inflationary pressure, the Bank of Russia stands open to increasing the key rate at its next meetings in order to stabilize inflation close to 4 percent in 2024 and beyond.
Russia drastically raised the key interest rate from 9.5 percent to 20 percent in February 2022 to support financial and price stability and protect the savings of citizens from depreciation, days after it launched a special military operation in Ukraine.
The Russian central bank began to slash the rate in April 2022, and the rate was gradually reduced to 7.5 percent in September that year.
