He said the Central Bank’s priority was to control changes in the exchange rate at a time when the national economy is growing and the ruble is strongly undervalued. The Central Bank had many possibilities to keep the projected limits, Mr. Ulyukayev stressed.

He also said the Central Bank would pass regulations on the liberalization of the foreign exchange market. The law on foreign exchange regulation and foreign exchange control is coming into effect on June 17; in connection with this, the Central Bank is preparing about 20 documents. Mr. Ulyukayev said some of them had already been approved by the Board of Directors, and some had been registered with the Justice Ministry.

In the sphere of monetary and credit policy, the Central Bank will continue to combine the elements of continuity with new principles, according to Mr. Ulyukayev. He said the Central Bank would create conditions for a gradual transition to a floating exchange rate of the ruble, market mechanisms to control liquidity, and lower reserve requirements. At the same time, Mr. Ulyukayev stressed that the Central Bank’s monetary and credit policy and exchange rate policy was a sphere that required continuity, not rash decisions.