World Bank Scenario Foresees $150Bln Capital Flight, GDP Contraction

The Russian economy may contract markedly this year and the country could see record capital outflow of $150 billion if the crisis over Moscow's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea deepens, the World Bank warned Wednesday.

The forecast 1.8 percent contraction represents the World Bank's high-risk scenario, but still assumes the international community will refrain from trade sanctions.

In an alternative low-risk scenario, assuming only a short-lived impact from the Crimean crisis, the bank sees GDP growth of 1.1 percent this year, compared with the 2.2 percent it predicted in its last report in December.

Russia caught in US and Chinese double-pincer