MOSCOW (AA) - Russia's central bank assured parliament on Thursday that the country is not at risk of default, despite economic sanctions imposed by the US and other Western countries on Moscow due to the war in Ukraine.
Bank of Russia Governor Elvira Nabiullina said in a speech to the Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, that the country has all the essential financial means to deal with the situation.
She also mentioned Russia's move to digital rubles, which will be used for foreign payments starting next year.
"We quickly created a prototype of the digital ruble, now we are testing it with banks," she said. "Next year, we will gradually make pilot payments in the real economy with digital rubles. The digital ruble will make these payments cheaper," she underlined.
She said the bank will also consider the issue of interest rate cuts at its upcoming meetings.
- Recovery from sanctions will take time
She said Russia's economy recovering from the aftermath of sanctions will take time.
Saying that producers in the country will face difficulties during the recovery process, she warned that even companies that mainly produce domestically may experience issues.
Citing examples from various sectors to illustrate the issues they could face, Nabiullina said: "For example, buttons. They are produced in many places, but businesses say it can take months to find new suppliers.
“Also, in the paper industry, our timber is entirely Russian-produced, but the bleaching chemicals are imported.”
She added, "In the food industry, raw materials are domestically produced, but foreign packaging needs to be sought urgently. All this needs time."
Russia has 15 international bonds with a face value of around $40 billion on the market.
*Writing and contributions by Aysu Bicer in Ankara