april – december ), which is 22 % less than the payments made in the same period of the previous year ( us $ 21. 1 billion ). now, given the recovery in economic activity in the world and in russia, as well as the increase in attractiveness of russian borrowers, there is the potential risk that these borrowers will accumulate excess foreign currency debt. this risk is emphasised by the fact that far from all of the exporter companies can claim to have a comprehensive natural hedge against currency risks. in some cases companies raise foreign currency debt which is not fully covered by inflows from export activities. in 2008 – 09 and 2014 – 15, the bank of russia ’ s assets were used to refinance external loans which had been raised by commodity companies. it is therefore essential to keep monitoring the risks of excessive external debt accumulation, for which purpose the bank of russia has instated monitoring of companies ’ foreign currency debt levels. among the many tools for macroprudential risk management are the measures taken by the bank of russia towards the deforexation of the economy. given that in russia, phases of the financial cycle largely correlate with phases of the commodity cycle, we think these measures need to be countercyclical – allowing banks to accumulate capital during periods of credit expansion and then use it as a cushion in periods of credit crunch. this approach will smooth out the sharpness of fluctuations in the financial cycle and reduce financial stability risks. 4 ) on credit risk in the banking sector first of all, it must be noted that for the most part credit risks in the corporate segment did in fact come to pass. if we look at the statistics, over the past six months the share of overdue loans has remained virtually unchanged, coming to 6. 7 % on 1 march 2017. the share of bad loans in banking portfolios also remains unchanged ( sitting at 8. 7 %, excluding rehabilitated banks, in contrast to the previous level of 8. 6 % ). the largest share of bad debt is to be found in the construction sector ( 27. 3 % ), real estate transactions ( 13. 5 % ) and wholesale and retail trade ( 15. 1 % ). to a large extent, the realisation of risks in these sectors was caused by the reckless actions of not only borrowers, but also banks providing foreign currency loans to borrowers who do not have foreign currency earnings. the second point i would like to address is how

elvira nabiullina : current problems in the post - pandemic economic recovery speech by ms elvira nabiullina, governor of the bank of russia, at the plenary session of the federation council meeting, 22 september 2021. * * * good afternoon, ms speaker and colleagues. thank you very much for inviting me to speak today, on the first day of the autumn session. in my speech, i would like to focus on current problems in the post - pandemic economic recovery. undoubtedly, we are pleased about its rapid pace. yet, the economic rebound is bringing some side effects that we must counter to ensure the stability of our economy, the financial system, and ultimately, the well - being of our people. the economy has now returned to the growth path it would have been on but for the pandemic. certainly, central to the successful delivery of anti - pandemic measures have been the government ’ s budget support measures alongside the prompt efforts of lawmakers to set up a legal framework for anti - crisis response measures. in turn, we at the bank of russia have granted regulatory relaxations to banks to support consumers and businesses, and to restructure and issue new loans in this challenging period. our monetary policy has been accommodative. it was only after we made sure that the economic recovery was becoming sustainable that we started to raise the key rate. certainly, i will explain why we are doing this as i know that there are many questions on this subject. unfortunately, all that does not mean that the problems caused by the pandemic are behind us. for example, we can see a strong rise in inflation, both domestically and across the globe : demand has recovered as restrictions and lockdowns have been lifted, while supply - side restrictions persist. companies in many sectors are recording skills shortages, and there are raw material and component supply disruptions. we are monitoring economic developments and the financial situation in the regions on an ongoing basis. at each policy board meeting, our regional executives report on how the situation in the regions is unfolding and provide us with a broad picture. we note a global rise in prices for many goods ( metals, wood, and food ), which are pushing up business costs. prices are increasing in many countries, but regulators view the current surge in inflation as temporary, and are just waiting for the trend to end. there is no way we can afford the same approach. let me explain why.