MOSCOW
The World Bank has downgraded its forecast for Russia's economy in 2015 due to falling oil prices.
The latest downward revision on Tuesday shows a decline in the former Soviet state's gross domestic product (GDP) of 2.9 percent, much higher than the previous prediction of 0.7 percent.
Russia's Minister of Economic Development, Alexey Ulyukaev, last month predicted a three percent drop in GDP growth, provided the price of oil remained at $60 per barrel.
However, shortly after the beginning of 2015 oil prices continued to fall.
"Persistently low oil prices will weaken economic activity in exporting countries," a World Bank report released on Wednesday states.
The Russian economy is expected to show positive growth only in 2016, with a rate of 0.1 percent, according to the report.
Currency crisis
Brent and West Texas Intermediate oil reported prices of $46.4 and $44.2 per barrel respectively a day before the report was published.
The World Bank predicted Russia's growth rate to be 0.7 percent in 2014.
Factors cited for the poor economic performance were uncertainty over the country's relationship with Ukraine and the West, declining oil prices, and foreign-imposed sanctions.
The situation made a sharp turn for the worse in the last month of 2014, with a currency crisis joining the list of factors weighing down on the Russian economy.
While the ruble managed to stabilize somewhat shortly after its historic fall on Dec. 16, after the first week of January oil prices continued their sharp decline and the currency followed suit.
