Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev warns country could face 'deep recession'

Russia's Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has warned the country is at risk of falling in to a "deep recession," RIA news agency reported.

Medvedev told members of his political party that a failure to follow through on government spending plans would push the country's economy into a deep recession.

With oil prices falling by around 40% since the summer, confidence in Russia's economy has dramatically fallen, causing the ruble to fall by around 40% against the dollar.

Meanwhile, Russia's parliament has approved a bill to provide additional aid to private banks, in the latest sign of government intervention in the country's economic crisis.

The move comes a day after the Russian central bank announced it would bail out the Trust Bank, one of the country's mid-sized lenders, to the tune of 30bn rubles (£353m, $548m.)

Russia's lower house has acted decisively in recent days, passing bill that allowed the Deposit Insurance Agency to purchase stakes in banks before they faced bankruptcy proceedings.

The central bank has also moved to relieve pressure on the Russian ruble, which has recovered slightly from last week's collapse.

The slide had prompted a wave of deposit outflows, but the government has put pressure on exporters to stop selling off rubles. Analysts have described the move as unofficial or informal capital controls.

The central bank has installed supervisors at currency trading desks at top state banks, according to Reuters who cited sources.

The ruble was trading at 55 to the dollar at 14:00 in London.