ANKARA

 "The ruble has become too strong, just as we had expected," Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Friday. 

“What was expected to happen has happened. The volume of gold reserves has stabilized. Then the ruble began to stabilize and has now strengthened. We believe that it has become way too strong,” Siluanov said, speaking at a lecture to economics students at the St. Petersburg State University.

The ruble typically strengthens before major tax payments. On Monday and Tuesday, Russian companies must pay VAT, mineral extraction tax and profit tax.

On Wednesday, the ruble rose to 52.87 against the dollar, then fell back below 50 where it is currently trading. 

But the ruble has come back 15 percent against the dollar since January. 

“The fast appreciation of the ruble that we saw, linked to the sharp 30 percent upswing in oil, is over,” the Central Bank First Deputy Governor Ksenia Yudaeva said at a conference on Wednesday. “Now we are seeing stabilization.”

The central bank is actively trying to keep the ruble stable.  It has recently increased the rate charged on lending to banks.

The central bank has also hinted at a possible rate hike in recent days.