Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has ordered the National Bank to stop printing money in a bid to keep the country’s finances stable after last year’s inflation crisis, RBC Daily reported on Tuesday.

“We should not in any way print money. This is absolutely ruled out. We have the possibility to earn normal money, so people feel improvement in their living standards,” the presidential press office quoted him as saying.

The Belarusian leader said everyone must forget that “emission money” could be used for lending and only funds earned in the economy as a whole could be used for loans to enterprises.

National Bank head Nadezhda Yermakova said the Belarusian ruble had been stable in the past three months and showed a trend towards appreciation in late January and early February, as more foreign currency was sold on the domestic foreign exchange market.

The Belarusian ruble came under strong pressure last year because of a large trade deficit, generous wage increases and loans granted by the government ahead of the December 2010 elections, when Lukashenko won his fourth term. Consumer prices soared 109 percent in Belarus last year, tipping the former Soviet republic into a severe economic and financial crisis.

Belarus' foreign exchange reserves were depleted last year, with citizens standing in lines to buy foreign exchange and banks introducing restrictions on withdrawing it on bank cards.

Belarus's gold and foreign exchange reserves grew over the New Year to $7.9 billion, due in part to $2.5 billion paid by Russian energy giant Gazprom for control of pipeline operator Beltransgaz.