GORKI (Moscow Region), May 27 (RIA Novosti) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told the finance minister on Tuesday that the government must keep inflation below 10.5% this year.

Russia's Statistics Service said earlier inflation has totaled 7.2% since the start of the year.

"The task of curbing inflation is now a key task of the government," Medvedev told Alexei Kudrin, who is also a deputy prime minister.

Kudrin told the president that his ministry and the Central Bank have been keeping control of the main monetary policy parameters. He also said money supply growth has been brought in line with the plans of the government and parliament.

Russia's inflation in May could total 1.2%, compared to 0.6% last year, the Finance Ministry said on Tuesday.

The government failed to keep inflation within the target of 8% last year - the figure hit 11.9%, driven up by high food and commodity prices.

The Finance Ministry also announced on Tuesday that net capital inflow is likely to total $15 billion in May, slightly less than last month.

"We estimate net capital inflow in April at $19 billion. According to our estimates it could reach $15 billion in May," Oksana Sergiyenko, director of the ministry's long-term financial planning department, said.

Net capital inflow into Russia reached a record $82.3 billion in 2007, almost double the previous year's figure, Russia's Central Bank earlier said.