The weakening of the ruble will not help the Russian economy, said First Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank Alexey Ulyukaev on Thursday on the sidelines of the SPIEF.

“I don’t think that a weak ruble will help the Russian economy,” Ulyukaev was quoted as saying by the Prime agency . According to him, the weakening of the ruble affects different sectors of the economy differently.

He also noted that the Bank of Russia does not feel pressure from the government regarding devaluation. “The Central Bank has real independence - not only on paper, but also in fact,” he said.

Earlier, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said that the government is looking for ways to stimulate economic growth, including considering the possibility of weakening the ruble exchange rate . He said that the Ministry of Finance will begin purchasing foreign currency on the domestic market in August to replenish state funds, which will lead to a weakening of the exchange rate by 1-2 rubles.

At the same time, Ulyukaev noted on Thursday that the Ministry of Finance’s purchase of foreign currency on the market will not have a significant impact on the exchange rate. “I think it won’t have much impact,” Interfax quotes the deputy chairman of the Central Bank . “It’s not really a material factor,” he added.

On Wednesday, the head of the Central Bank, Sergei Ignatiev, also said that the Central Bank does not expect the ruble to fall due to the purchase of foreign currency by the Ministry of Finance. He confirmed that in August a new procedure for foreign exchange interventions will be launched, in which the Ministry of Finance will buy currency from the Central Bank every day, and the Central Bank will simultaneously buy the same amounts on the market in the interests of the Ministry of Finance. And vice versa, if the Reserve Fund has to be spent to eliminate the budget deficit, the Ministry of Finance will sell currency to the Central Bank, and the Central Bank will sell these amounts on the market.

In addition, on Wednesday evening, Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov called the devaluation of the ruble “impossible . ”

After Siluanov’s statement, the ruble exchange rate began to decline. During trading on Thursday morning, the ruble hit local lows, falling by 30 kopecks against the dollar and euro.

Ulyukaev does not see any benefit for the economy from the devaluation of the ruble