MOSCOW, Aug 29 Reuters Russian imports will fall in 2024, hit by problems with crossborder payments and logistical difficulties linked to Western sanctions, the central bank said in a draft of its monetary policy guidelines for the next three years released on Thursday.

Russian companies and officials have been complaining about delays in transactions with China for months after its banks grew more cautious and tightened compliance in response to Western threats of secondary sanctions for dealing with Russia.

Imports will decrease in 2024 due to the strengthening of sanctions barriers related to payments and logistics, the central bank said, although it predicted that the situation would improve in the medium term.

These restrictions will be shortterm, and in the following years, a gradual recovery of imports is expected, thanks to the diversification of supplies and the development of new logistics chains, it added.

The release of the guidelines follows a strong set of economic data, published on Wednesday, showing solid growth in many sectors, prompting officials to hint at a brighter outlook for the year despite Western sanctions.

The data also pointed to an overheating of the economy that forced the central bank to hike its benchmark interest rate by 200 basis points to 18 in July, the highest level in more than two years.

The regulator said in its guidelines that it would need to maintain tight monetary policy for a prolonged period to achieve a sustainable…