MOSCOW, Dec 2 (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that a fall in output in some sectors of the economy was not acceptable, and a transition to balanced growth remained a goal for the government and the central bank.
Speaking at an annual “Russia Calling” investment event, Putin said economic growth was now expected to slow to between 0.5% and 1%, which was an expected consequence of the central bank policy to fight inflation.
“At the same time, some imbalances have emerged. In several sectors, production output not only failed to increase this year but actually decreased. Are we satisfied with such trends? No,” Putin said.
Recent data showed that growth in industrial output was driven mainly by defence-related sectors, while output in sectors producing goods for civilian use was either stagnating or falling.
“The government and the central bank were tasked with fundamental objectives, namely, to ensure a transition to a balanced growth,” Putin said, adding that he will discuss these tasks with officials at a special meeting next week.
Putin said that inflation was now expected to fall to around 6% by the end of December, calling it “an important achievement of this year”.
Annual consumer inflation dropped to 6.92% as of November 27, the economy ministry said last week. Inflation has been gradually decreasing, after hitting 10.3% in March, as a result of the central bank’s tight monetary policy.
In September, the government cut its forecast for inflation in 2025 to 6.8%, from 7.6% previously, and for GDP growth to 1% from 2.5%. The central bank will make its next decision on its key rate, now at 16.5%, at a meeting on December 19.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Gleb Bryanski; Editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Alex Richardson)
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