President Vladimir听笔耻迟颈苍听said late on Tuesday that the听搁耻蝉蝉颈补苍听别肠辞苍辞尘测听was performing听产别迟迟别谤听迟丑补苍听别虫辫别肠迟别诲听after Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin reported to him that gross domestic product growth and inflation have been surprisingly positive.
GDP growth may exceed 2% this year and consumer price inflation may not rise above 5% in annual terms, Mr. Mishustin told Mr. Putin聽at a meeting at the Kremlin. The International Monetary Fund聽听迟丑别听搁耻蝉蝉颈补苍听别肠辞苍辞尘测听to grow 0.7% this year.
“Our results, at least for the time being, let’s say, cautiously, are听产别迟迟别谤听迟丑补苍听previously听别虫辫别肠迟别诲,听产别迟迟别谤听迟丑补苍听predicted,” Mr. Putin聽said, according to a transcript on the Kremlin’s website.
Analysts polled by Reuters at the end of June聽聽growth of 1.2% and inflation at 5.7% in 2023.
Russia’s聽别肠辞苍辞尘测听contracted 2.1% in 2022 and was under particular pressure in spring last year when Kyiv’s allies imposed sweeping sanctions against Moscow over its military campaign in Ukraine.
Russia’s technocrats have helped to offset some of the blow by repurposing the聽别肠辞苍辞尘测听and propelling it with cash, with the finance ministry saying earlier that public spending聽聽year-on-year in the first five months of the year.
On Tuesday, Mr. Mishustin told听笔耻迟颈苍听that he had confidence that if there was no force majeure circumstances, the聽别肠辞苍辞尘测听would perform well this year.
“Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin), the country’s聽别肠辞苍辞尘测听continues to confidently recover, despite the sanctions, despite all the impediments placed on our country,” Mr. Mishustin said.
The effect of the sanctions has been painful, however, with Western financial markets and many export markets for听搁耻蝉蝉颈补苍听companies and commodities closed.
Crucial oil and gas revenues in January-May of this year were nearly half of what they were a year ago in the corresponding period, blamed on lower prices for Urals crude and lower natural gas export volumes.
Finance Minister Anton Siluanov has repeatedly said Russia’s budget deficit this year would be no more聽迟丑补苍听2% of GDP, although most analysts disagree.
The International Monetary Fund is among those expecting Russia to see a sharply wider budget deficit this year. – Reuters
