MOSCOW--The Bank of Russia's monetary policy should not be used to fight food price inflation resulting from a smaller-than-expected harvest, the central bank's Deputy Chairman Sergei Shvetsov said Tuesday.
"Inflation from grain prices is not a monetary factor," and should not be dealt with using monetary policy, Mr. Shvetsov told reporters at a briefing.
Russia has seen consumer prices rise to an estimated annual 5.5% this month from 3.7% in June on the back of hikes in utility tariffs and a jump in food prices, as this season's grain harvest comes in below expectations.
Some economists have speculated this may lead the central bank to tighten monetary policy at its August rate meeting, which is scheduled for the first half of the month.
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