The Russian national currency may drop to slightly more than 60 rubles per $1 by the end of this year if oil prices remain at the current level, the head of Russia’s Center for Strategic Research (CSR) and ex-Finance Minister Alexey Kudrin said.
"If the (oil) price remains at the current level - $56-57 (per barrel) the ruble will even slightly weaken to more than 60 rubles per dollar by the yearend," he noted.
"Unlike developed economies our country has a huge amount of state-owned assets. The resource raised from the privatization may be invested in infrastructure, technologies, education. However, it is necessary to make the country more open, to invite foreigners among other things," TASS cited Kudrin as saying.
"Prices will be heading for a new equilibrium level. This has already been happening for the past two years, and will be happening for at least one, two, maybe three years, so we’ll probably see various prices, both $40 and $55," the CSR head warned.
