Putin calls on Russian firms to invest at home as sanctions bite

President Vladimir Putin on Friday urged Russia's enterprises to boost their domestic investment to help realise the country's "gigantic potential" and defy what he called Western attempts to destroy the Russian economy.

Speaking at Russia's flagship annual economic conference - once a symbol of Moscow's openness to Western business ties, Putin attacked the West for hitting Russia with unprecedented sanctions. He said some global currencies were "committing suicide" in a reference to the unprecedented freezing of around $300 billion of Russia's foreign currency reserves.

Despite the economic turmoil and a looming recession which is set to be Russia's deepest contraction in at least two decades, Putin said Moscow would stick to a "responsible macroeconomic policy". He said the government's spending plans should be "predictable."