CBR's Nabiullina: We expect that many limits due to coronavirus will be lifted in Q2

Central Bank of Russia (CBR) chief Elvira Nabiullina on Friday said that they were expecting many coronavirus-related restrictions to be lifted in the second quarter. Commenting on the CBR's decision to lower the policy rate by 50 basis points, Nabiullina noted that monetary easing was necessary to keep inflation at around 4%.

Additional takeaways

"We expect annual inflation at 3.8-4.8% by year-end."

"Government may take extra steps to support the economy."

"Potential for monetary policy easing is seen under any scenario."

"We still see scope for monetary easing at the next meetings."

Market reaction

The USD/RUB pair edged slightly higher on these comments and was last seen trading at 74.5150, where it was down 0.35% on the day.