Prime Minister Vladimir Putin believes that the Russian Central Bank is pursuing a cautious lending policy at a time when external risks for the country’s economy are growing. “We have maintained an acceptable level of lending, without being too excessive,” he said during the live TV program “A Conversation with Vladimir Putin: Continued.”

“Excessive lending is dangerous too. Why? Because when the economy is indiscriminately injected with money, this leads to economic bubbles. When money is issued without good reason, companies overproduce, and then they cannot find markets for their goods,” he said.

“In the United States, loans are issued with a down payment of close to zero, and, trust me, all the experts worry about how and when this will end. It is a threat to the global economy, because it encourages inflation and has other negative consequences as well.”