IMF chief urges Russia to build up reserve funds

Russia needs to build up its reserve funds to be prepared for a drastic fall in global oil prices, International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde said on Monday. Lagarde is on a three-day visit to Moscow to discuss measures to overcome negative trends in the global economy, further steps to reform the world financial system and reform the IMF. Her trip is the first visit by an IMF managing director to Russia in the last seven years. Lagarde said at a lecture in Moscow that the Russian economy remained vulnerable to developments on global markets. In these conditions Russia’s main task is to continue building up its Reserve Fund and National Wealth Fund while world oil prices remain at a high level, she said. She also said that European banks might start withdrawing their funds from Russia to solve their liquidity problems after writing off a large portion of the Greek debt, which could cause a liquidity crunch on the market.