MOSCOW, (Sputnik) — Russian Central Bank in an optimistic scenario improved the forecast for the Urals oil price from $46 to $55 per barrel in 2017, and from $50 to $60 per barrel in 2018, the bank said in a press release Friday.
"Under this scenario, a gradual increase of the average annual price for Urals oil from $55 per barrel in 2017 to $60 per barrel in 2018 and its retention at this level in the future, is planned," the press release read.
26 December 2016, 13:20 GMT
According to Russian Economy Ministry, average annual price for Urals oil in 2016 averaged at $41.8 per barrel.
Oil market turbulence caused oil prices to plunge from $115 per barrel in June 2014 to less than $30 per barrel in January 2016, causing hardship for oil exporters.
