UPDATE: Econ ministry sees Russian investment down 3–3.5% 2016

(Adds details on capital outflow in last two paragraphs)

MOSCOW, Mar 24 (PRIME) -- Russia’s Economic Development Ministry expects investments to contract by 3–3.5% in 2016, Minister Alexei Ulyukayev said Thursday at a meeting of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs.

“Last year, we had an 8.4% fall of investment, lesser than we expected but still very much. This year, we have not yet seen a chance to quite the negative sector for investment demand, and we expect the fall of investment to be slightly less, at about 3–3.5%, but it will nevertheless remain,” he said.

The ministry’s forecast encompasses a 1.6% contraction of fixed capital investment in Russia in 2016. The ministry is to publish an adjusted forecast in April.

But the ministry will improve its forecast for net private capital outflow later to U.S. $30–35 billion in 2016 from a previously expected $57 billion, he said.

In February, the central bank also improved its forecast for net private capital outflow in 2016 to $30–40 billion from $53 billion.

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