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Russia losing 'up to $140B' from sanctions, oil drop

Russia is suffering losses at a rate of about $40 billion per year because of Western sanctions and $90-100 billion from the drop in the oil price, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Monday.

The admission came on the same morning that a central bank official said that banking profits could be 10 percent lower in 2014, compared to the previous year.

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Alexei Simanovsky, the Russian central bank's first deputy chairman said at a press conference that lenders may earn less profit due to the restrictions.

Anton Siluanov, Finance Minister of Russia.
Andrey Rudakov | Bloomberg | Getty Images

External markets are largely closed for Russian banks and companies, some of which - including top banks and VTB - are under Western sanctions over Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis.

Banks' profits and margins are also under pressure because they have to serve increased domestic demand for loans, while their sources of capital and liquidity are limited.

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