E-Paper
Vladimir Putin exalts Russian economy: ‘At least for the time being…’
Russia-Ukraine War: The country's economy contracted 2.1% in 2022 and was under pressure in spring last year.
Russian president Vladimir Putin said that the country's economy was performing better than he expected as prime minister Mikhail Mishustin reported to him that GDP growth and inflation have been surprisingly positive amid the invasion of Ukraine. GDP growth may exceed 2% this year and consumer price inflation may not rise above 5% in annual terms, Mikhail Mishustin told Putin.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects the Russian economy to grow 0.7% this year. "Our results, at least for the time being, let's say, cautiously, are better than previously expected, better than predicted," Vladimir Putin said while Reuters reported that at the end of June Russia saw GDP growth of 1.2% and inflation at 5.7% in 2023.
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The country's economy contracted 2.1% in 2022 and was under pressure in spring last year as sweeping sanctions were imposed against Moscow over its invasion in Ukraine.
"Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin), the country's economy continues to confidently recover, despite the sanctions, despite all the impediments placed on our country," Mikhail Mishustin said. The finance ministry said earlier that public spending was 26.5% higher year-on-year in the first five months of 2023.
The Russian PM also told Vladimir Putin that the economy would perform well this year even though the effect of the sanctions has been painful for the country. Russian finance minister Anton Siluanov has repeatedly said that the country's budget deficit this year would be no more than 2% of GDP. The IMF expects Russia to see a sharply wider budget deficit this year.
