Net capital outflow from Russia has reached $19.2 bln compared to a year ago when it was merely $0.2 bln, the Bank of Russia reports.
In the third quarter of the year the money outflow has thus gone up 48-fold. Over the nine months of the year, capital flight amounted to $32 bln ($13.7 bln between January and October 2017).
Experts believe, negative investment is caused by the anti-Russian US sanctions. Investors are cautions of the geopolitical risks and of the decline of Russia’s economy subjected to the Western sanctions. Citibank’s analysts, for instance, have forecasted capital drain in the environment of the two superpowers’ confrontation.
The Central Bank though explains the situation by some technicalities, i.e. by its payments to meet Russia’s external liabilities (i.e. repaying debts to foreign lenders).