The Russian central bank expects its gold and foreign currency reserves to shrink to $515 billion by the start of next year from the $526 billion now, according to a 2012-2014 monetary program obtained by RIA Novosti on Monday.
The ruble has been falling against the dollar and the euro since the start of September, when reserves stood at about $545 billion.
The bank expects its reserves to stand at between $505 and $589 billion depending on the price of oil, Russia's key export.