Russian central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina is expecting more sanctions ahead, she told Russia’s RBC media outlet in an interview published on Monday.
While Russia has weathered the economic storms of the last two years, Nabiullina warned against thinking the country is “ten feet tall,” according to a TASS state news agency translation. She added the pressure from sanctions may intensify, so the country must prepare for it.
Nabiullina’s comments came 22 months after Russia invaded Ukraine, triggering sweeping sanctions. However, Russia’s economy still appears resilient.
She did not mention Ukraine or the war throughout the interview.
Nabiullina has been Russia’s central bank governor since 2013 and was Russia’s economic development minister from 2007 to 2012. The 60-year-old has been credited with steering the Russian economy through several shocks, including the Global Financial Crisis of 2007 to 2008 and sanctions that hit Russia after it annexed Crimea in 2014.
Now, the technocrat is seen to be supporting President Vladimir Putin’s wartime economy with her policy-making. Politico Europe recently named Nabiullina its top “disruptor” this year, citing her role in stabilizing Russia’s economy despite challenges including sweeping sanctions, a massive brain drain, and high inflation.
The European Union rolled out its 12th sanctions package against Russia earlier this month, while the US also tightened sanctions against Russia.
Nabiullina told RBC that Russia’s economy has adapted quickly to sanctions and is restructuring.
“We see that economic restructuring is happening quite rapidly, and this is first of all due to the market nature of the economy, in particular, the business sector, which has adjusted very quickly,” said Nabiullina, per TASS.
However, she acknowledged challenges, including issues with cross-border payments and weak investor sentiment amid the swathe of trade restrictions against Russia.
Despite these, Nabiullina said she was positive that profits at Russian banks will stay positive next year, attributing the performance to economic activity.
While Russia’s economy appears to be holding up well amid the war in Ukraine — the country reported 5.5% GDP growth in the third quarter of this year — the country’s official economic statistics are nearly impossible to verify. Reports suggest that much of the country’s growth is due to massive military and government spending.
Igor Lipsits, a prominent Russian economist, told Reuters last month that “the real situation is bad” for the country’s economy.
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