Putin says Central Bank pursues careful rouble rate policy

TOGLIATTI, May 12 (Itar-Tass) -- Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
approved of the Central Bank's rouble rate policy.
"The Central Bank is acting carefully," Putin said, referring to the
Bank's policy of lowering or raising the rouble's exchange rate. "All my
talks and meetings with CBR Chairman Sergei Ignatyev begin and end with
this," he said at a congress of the Union of Russian Machine Builders on
Wednesday, May 11.
Putin stressed that he himself and the Central Bank understand the
importance of the exchange rate policy. "It's just that the fiscal
authorities have a limited number of tools for solving the tasks that face
them," he said.
"Curbing inflation is one of the tools. Oil prices are high, our
enterprises sell hydrocarbons for dollars or euros, and the Central Bank
takes this money from them in exchange for roubles which it prints. That's
it. One does not have to be a skilled financier to understand this," the
prime minister said.
"When the amount of foreign currency brought into the country grows
rapidly, two key tools are used: changing the rouble's exchange rate to
strengthen the national currency, which the Central Bank is doing, or
increasing reserves by putting this money away into reserves," he said.
"But we cannot put away too much now because of big social expenditures.
Nevertheless the Central Bank is acting carefully. All my talks and
meetings with CBR Chairman Sergei Ignatyev begin and end with this," Putin
said.