The high deficit of the Russian budget is a major factor in the weakening of the ruble, the ex-Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said.
"I think that a certain high budget deficit is a factor in the weakening of the ruble even if oil price is stable. I think around 70 rubles per dollar with same oil prices," he said.
According to the forecast of the former head of the Ministry of Finance, the price of oil in 2016 will amount to $ 35-40 per barrel.
Kudrin also believes that the GDP will decline 1.5-2% in 2016 against oil prices of $30-40 a barrel and will show minor growth in 2017. "I think oil prices will range from $35 to $40 a barrel in 2016. I believe the GDP will drop from 1.5% to 2% under such prices," TASS cited him as saying.
In addition, the ex-minister believes that the capital outflow in Russia in 2016 may be just as a year earlier, about $50 billion. According to the Central Bank, the private capital outflow was $56.9 billion in 2015.
