Speaking at a conference on IPO capital markets and debt instruments, First Deputy Chairman Alexei Ulyukayev said, "We expect trade surplus to decrease against growing imports in the medium term."
"The balance of payments will be less positive from the point of view of the current account, while the opposite will be true for the capital account," he said.
Ulyukayev said that at the moment the Central Bank has to buy foreign currency from the market, as supply exceeds demand by several billion dollars.
In September, Ulyukayev said that by late 2006, net capital inflow would reach $15-$20 billion. He attributed the growth to an upgrade of the country's credit ratings by leading international rating agencies and to investors' response to the lifting of restrictions on foreign capital in July.
He also said that in 2005, capital inflow had exceeded capital outflow for the first time since the 1990s - an era of massive capital flight - because of a healthier investment climate.
