Russia raises interest rate to fight inflation

MOSCOW, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- Russia's central bank raised the key interest rate by 100 basis points to 16 percent amid high inflationary pressures, the bank said in a statement Friday.

It said that annual inflation exceeded initial forecasts, and is expected to be close to the upper bound of the 7-7.5 percent range by the end of 2023.

"At the same time, the Bank of Russia expects GDP (gross domestic produc