MOSCOW, March 10 (RIA Novosti) - Inflation in Russia will total 1% in March, and 5-5.2% in the first quarter of 2006, the Economic Development and Trade Ministry said Friday.
Deputy Minister Andrei Belousov said, "Our forecast for March is in the region of 1%, based on the figure for the first week."
On March 6, President Vladimir Putin said that restraining inflation while sustaining economic growth was a key goal for Russia's economy.
Putin said that despite the inflation target for 2006 of 8.5%, Russia saw inflation of 4% in just the first two months of the year.
"There have been a lot of discussions, but we have not yet achieved the expected result," he said.
