NEWSWATCH: “Russia Achieves Tactical Success in the Middle East, But No Strategic Victory; Russia needs good ties with the West more than short-term gains in Ukraine and Syria” – Thomas Graham/YaleGlobal Online

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

… From the beginning of its military operation in Syria, Moscow has operated on the now indisputable proposition that … rampant unrest in the Middle East and … mounting challenges to the unity of the European Union are inextricably linked. The wager was that Europe would eventually seize an offer of cooperation in Syria to constrict the migrant flow and […]

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Russia’s Economy Is Tanking, So Why Is Putin Smiling?

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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Evgenia Pismennaya, Anna Andrianova – February 29, 2016) With Russia mired in the longest recession in two decades, there hasn’t been a lot of good economic news lately. But there’s one indicator that’s looking up, and it’s the one that matters most to Vladimir Putin: His hard-currency reserves. The central bank held $379 billion in foreign […]

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Moscow Times: Russian Middle Class Has Not Felt Impact of Economic Crisis

Cash, Calculator, Pen

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 29, 2016) Russia’s middle class has not yet felt the impact of the economic crisis, the Kommersant newspaper reported Monday citing a report by the Institute of Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Most middle class Russians have retained their jobs and income levels, and many have even reduced their debt burden under […]

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Shuvalov: economic situation in Russia is difficult, there is no influx of guest workers to Russia

Russian Migrant Workers file photo

MOSCOW. Feb 26 (Interfax) – Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said there is no big influx of foreign labor migrants to Russia amid the economic problems. “We need to understand that the economic situation in the country is very difficult. Migrants are not so active now as they were when our national currency was rather strong,” Shuvalov said […]

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Russia Seen Dodging Political Storm as Putin Rides Out Recession

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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Andre Tartar, Anna Andrianova – February 25, 2016) As Russia hunkers down for the second year of recession, most economists say a parliamentary election in September won’t unleash the kind of protests that rattled the country in 2011. There’s a 30 percent chance that economic distress will translate into political unrest, according to the median of […]

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Most Russian Monotown Residents Say Economic Situation Unbearable

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 25, 2016) A total of 59.8 percent of residents of Russia’s single-industry towns consider their socio-economic situation to be unbearable or hardly bearable, the RBC newspaper reported Thursday, citing a poll by the Federal Guard Service (FSO). Only 3.9 percent of respondents said the socio-economic situation in their town was favorable and 31.3 percent […]

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Russians Adjust to Increasing Poverty like Frogs to Gradually Warming Water, Kirillova Says

Cash, Calculator, Pen

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, February 23, 2016) It has long been claimed that a frog who might jump out of a port of boiling water will stay quietly in a gradually warming pot, even though as a result, he will end up dead. In a new commentary, Kseniya Kirillova suggests that Russians are adapting to gradually […]

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Can Things Get Any Worse for Russia? You’re About to Find Out

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Investors who’ve made a fortune in the country say that with oil’s plunge, the ruble’s collapse, and Putin in power, all bets are off (Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Ksenia Galouchko and Henry Meyer – February 23, 2016) [Charts here bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-24/putin-s-oil-despair-drives-lucky-few-investors-toward-the-exits] For a decade, Dmitri Barinov has been following the volatile economy of his homeland from the safe distance of Union […]

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TRANSCRIPT: [Medvedev on] The Government’s action plan to ensure stable socioeconomic development in 2016

Dmitri Medvedev file photo

(Government.ru – February 18, 2016) Excerpts from Dmitry Medvedev’s opening remarks at the Government meeting: The budget sector and the real sector are overstrained today due to low oil prices and sanctions, so there have been a lot of proposals to be included in the plan but far from all of them were incorporated into the final version. We need […]

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NEWSWATCH: “Russia government mulls five percent cut in defense procurement spending: sources” – Reuters

File Photo of Russian Tanks in Military Parade

Russia’s government is considering cutting spending on defense procurement this year by 5 percent … a move that would extend the budget squeeze to a sector that up to now has been immune …. The proposal has support across several ministries and in other state institutions, enough for it to go forward for discussion at a cabinet meeting, the sources […]

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TRANSCRIPT: Dmitry Medvedev’s meeting with Russian and German business leaders at the Munich Security Conference

Map of Germany

(Government.ru – February 13, 2016) Dmitry Medvedev: Mr Buechele, colleagues. I welcome you to our breakfast on this Saturday morning. It’s this kind of morning meal where you don’t usually have the chance to eat anything. The goal of such meetings is naturally different. I consider this meeting to be useful and timely. Despite all that’s going on and all […]

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TRANSCRIPT: Dmitry Medvedev’s speech at the panel discussion – Munich Security Conference

Dmitri Medvedev file photo

(Government.ru – February 13, 2016) Dmitry Medvedev: Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished colleague Mr Valls, distinguished Mr Ischinger, my speech will be of a more general nature, but I hope it will be useful. The first cold war ended 25 years ago. This is not long in terms of history, but it is a considerable period for individual people and even […]

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Majority of Russians Consider Impoverishment Country’s Main Threat

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 12, 2016) Fifty-three percent of Russians consider the impoverishment of citizens and rising prices to be the major threats facing the country, the Interfax news agency reported Friday, citing the results of a recent poll by the independent Levada Center pollster. The other threats that Russia currently faces, according to respondents, include the economic […]

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NEWSLINK RBTH/Kommersant: “Russian retail figures retreat to 1970 levels as crisis deepens. The Ministry of Economy has published figures revealing the Russian retail sector’s worst performance in over 40 years as inflation remains high. The report also shows a rise in the number of people in the country living below the poverty line”

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NEWSWATCH: “Weak Oil Prices Fuel Ukrainian Hopes of a More Conciliatory Russia” – Wall Street Journal

Oil Well file photo

The Wall Street Journal covers Russian economic vulnerability amidst falling oil prices and its possible impact on efforts to resolve the Russo-Ukrainian conflict . Ukraine’s political elite is hoping that plummeting oil prices will restrain neighboring Russia’s interventionist ambitions—and give Western sanctions on Russia a bit more bite. … diplomatic overtures have raised hopes in Kiev that Moscow—which annexed Crimea […]

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NEWSWATCH: “Mortgages vs. pensions and blasts from the past”

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BNE covers the impact of the Russian economic crisis on mortgage holders, and resulting unrest. Russia is in a painful place and freeing the ruble in November last year may be acting as a very effective shock absorber in the face of plummeting oil prices, but it also means that the brunt of the pain is being borne by the […]

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Russians Spend More Than They Earn For First Time Since 1998

Cash, Calculator, Pen

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 10, 2016) The spending of Russians exceeded their income in 2015 for the first time in 18 years, the Kommersant newspaper reported Wednesday, citing the Center of Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-term Forecasting. According to the Rosstat state statistics service, the expenditures of Russians exceeded their revenues by 418 billion rubles ($5.3 billion). In 2014, […]

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NEWSLINK: “Amid recession and predatory officials, Russia’s small businesses hang on. Small businesses are a small part of Russia’s oligarch-dominated economy. But despite the headwinds they face – and the instability they could bring to the current order – they are showing resilience amid the downturn.” – Christian Science Monitor

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Small businesses taking off in Russia, thanks to the crisis

File Photo of Cash Register with Drawer Open and Hands of Cashier

Many Russians are responding to a reduction in income or the loss of a job by showing creativity in setting up a small business, with the fastest growing sectors today in catering and online. RBTH asked several entrepreneurs to tell the story of their success. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – ANNA KUCHMA, RBTH – February 8, 2016) While […]

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Russia’s latest anti-crisis plan: How will it work?

Kremlin and River

The Russian government is making fresh attempts to lead the economy out of the crisis, primarily by investing in industry. RBTH analyzes the Kremlin’s latest anti-crisis plan and offers three alternative strategies for overcoming the crisis. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – ALEXEI LOSSAN, RBTH – February 4, 2016) At the beginning of 2016 the signs for the Russian […]

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Russia sees 1% January inflation, annual falls to single figures – Rosstat

Cash, Calculator, Pen

MOSCOW. Feb 5 (Interfax) – Russia had 1% inflation in January 2016, compared with 0.8% in both December and November 2015, the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) said. Analysts told Interfax in a consensus forecast at the end of January that they thought inflation for the month would be 1%. Inflation soared to 3.9% in January 2015 – the highest […]

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Can Russia Be More Miserable? Judging by Oil, the Answer Is Yes

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Combining inflation and unemployment, Russia is among the world’s unhappiest economies (Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Elena Popina – February 4, 2016) [Charts here bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-04/can-russia-be-more-miserable-judging-by-oil-the-answer-is-yes] The sinking price of crude has Russia hostage over a barrel of oil. For an inkling of how unhappy everyday Russians have gotten as Brent crude heads further south, take a look at the Misery Index […]

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Putin Opens Asset Sales to Foreigners as Budget Gap Widens

Empty Boardroom

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Ilya Arkhipov and Andrey Biryukov – February 2, 2016) President Vladimir Putin will allow foreign investors to bid for stakes in some of Russia’s largest companies as the government prepares its most ambitious asset-sale program in years to close a widening budget gap. “Russia was and remains open for foreign investment and Russia is interested in […]

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Economic Minister says moderate economic growth possible in Russia in 2016

Alexei Ulyukayev file photo

(Interfax – February 2, 2016) Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev does not rule out the possibility of the Russian economy shifting to moderate growth in 2016. “A shift is already possible this year, perhaps, to moderate, recovery growth in the economy for the time being. We should be prepared for this,” Ulyukayev said at a ministry meeting on Feb. 2. […]

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Inflation Is Most Worrying Problem for Russians – Poll

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – February 2, 2016) The number of Russians that consider high inflation one of the country’s biggest problems increased sharply in January, a survey by state-run pollster VTsIOM revealed Tuesday. Twelve percent of Russians were concerned about rising prices in December, but in January that number jumped to 20 percent, according to the poll. Other problems […]

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Russians put economy, inflation on top of most pressing national problems

File Photo of Older Russian Woman Shopping in Grocery Store

(Interfax – February 2, 2016) The economy, inflation, and low living standards have been viewed by the public as the top three most pressing problems in Russia, for the past six months, the Russian Public Opinion Study Center (VTsIOM) has said. The economy was the number one problem in the January rating. Concerns about economic affairs started growing in November […]

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Has the crisis driven back corruption in Russia?

Hand Pulling Cash from Envelope

The British television channel BBC One has reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s personal fortune totals $40 billion. At the same time, Putin himself has ordered officials to act “tough” in returning everything stolen and taken out of Russia. Could the economic crisis lead to a reduction in corruption in the country? (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – YEKATERINA […]

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As Ruble Nosedives, Russians Are Priced Out Of Live-Saving Western Treatment

Medical Symbol with Pole, Serpents, Wings, adapted from image at lanl.gov

(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Claire Bigg – February 1, 2016) As the ruble continues its catastrophic tumble, hitting another historic low last month, the pain is being felt keenly across Russia. Among those worst hit are patients in need of urgent surgery abroad or other life-saving treatment billed in foreign currencies. “It all started with a bad cough and a […]

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The Upside of a Down Ruble

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Peter Hobson – January 29, 2016) President Vladimir Putin chose an unfortunate time to trumpet the “additional opportunities” for Russian companies arising from a weaker ruble. As he spoke to delegates at a business forum on Jan. 20, the Russian currency was gyrating wildly. The next day it plummeted to its lowest level in recent […]

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Russia’s Great Shift Downward; Putin has shown little interest in changing the economic model.

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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Carol Matlack – January 28, 2016) For Russia’s battered economy, 2016 already looks miserable. The ruble has slumped to record lows as oil prices have fallen 11 percent since Jan. 1, to around $30 a barrel. The government, which gets nearly half its revenue from oil and gas, is scrambling to plug a 1.5 trillion-ruble ($19.2 […]

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RBTH: Investors could benefit from Russia’s economic turmoil

File Photo of Outdoor Electronic Sign with Russian Exchange Data

As the Russian economy hits hard times, with business incomes falling, government spending facing cuts and the ruble losing value, RBTH spoke to Sergei Katyrin, president of Russia’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to find out how foreign companies are enduring the current “perfect storm” for business. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – ILYA KROL, RBTH – January 28, […]

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Russians suggest state should save money on officials, not on social policy

Kremlin and River

(Interfax – January 27, 2016) In the situation of the crisis, Russians support the idea of saving money on officials, but believe it is unacceptable to cut the costs of healthcare, social policy, science and education, sociologists have reported, citing a poll conducted by VTsIOM. The poll, which surveyed 1,600 people, in 130 populated areas in 46 regions, was conducted […]

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NEWSLINK Carnegie Moscow/Mikhail Krutikhin: “The Russian Oil Industry in the Era of Cheap Crude. A recent slight increase in Russia’s oil output is likely to be short-lived. Oil production may decline almost twofold by the end of the year due to a lack of financing for new field exploration and development.”

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Russians’ Real Wages Fall 9.5% in 2015

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – January 26, 2016) As Russia’s inflation reached double-digits last year, Russians saw their real wages decline by 9.5 percent compared to 2014, data published by the Rosstat state statistics service showed Monday. In December 2015, real wages of Russians dropped 10 percent when compared to the same month in 2014, according to Rosstat data. The […]

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NEWSLINK: “Russian Oil: Output Grows as Prospects Shrink. Plummeting prices and U.S.-led sanctions raise questions about Russian oil’s capacity to continue underwriting Putin’s global ambitions.” – Wall Street Journal

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