(Source: http://kapital-rus.ru/news)

The Ministry of Economic Development expects a weaker alleviation of the Russian currency comparing with forecasted earlier - at the end of this year the dollar will cost 63 rubles, not 68 rubles. This was stated by the head of the department, Maxim Oreshkin.

According to him, the average exchange rate for 2017 will be 59.7 rubles per dollar, compared with 64.4 rubles, laid in the previous version of the forecast. Next year, the average annual rate of the Russian currency will be 64.7 rubles per dollar (69.8 rubles in the previous forecast), in 2019 it will be 66.9 rubles (71.2 rubles), and in 2020 it will be up to 68 rubles (72, 7 rubles).

At the end of 2017 the inflation in Russia may be 3.5-3.7 percent, Oreshkin believes. "This will open the possibility of lowering rates for the Central Bank and, thanks to the easing of monetary policy, the Central Bank will be able to return inflation closer to the target values of four percent at the end of 2018," the minister said.

Against the backdrop of expectations for accelerating investment activity, the forecast for economic growth is improved: in 2017-2018, Russia's GDP will be increased by 2.1 percent (instead of two percent in the previous scenario), in 2019 - by 2.2 percent, in 2020 - to 2, 3 percent.