Balance of payments of contemporary Russia: Specificities, management, prospects

The paper puts a set of questions: why the current account of oil exporting Russia is not only positive but also comparatively stable; what management of the balance of payments is made to support this surplus and how does it impact the economic development of Russia; what are the prospects of the evolution of the balance of payments in the light of tasks of national economy modernization? As a respond to the first two questions the paper analyzes the structure of the balance of payments and principal instruments used by the Bank of Russia to manage it as well as the contradictory impact of this management on economic development of the country. The scenario of active modernization of national economy is put forward as the basis for the analysis of the future evolution of the balance of payments of Russia.