MOSCOW, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that the country's economy is gradually recovering from recession, but warned that the positive trend is still unstable, the president's official site reported.

"We must provide such macroeconomic conditions that could encourage the growth of the national economy and preserve the downward trend of inflation," said Putin.

The inflation target for the medium term is 4 percent, the Russian president said. Currently, the inflation rate is about 7 percent.

Putin also said that the government has nearly finished the federal budget for 2017, which will be soon presented to the State Duma for approval.

The Russian economy slid into recession in 2014 amid tumbling oil prices and tightening Western sanctions against Moscow over its role in the Ukraine crisis.