Russian economy holding strong under external pressure – Putin
The Russian economy continues to be resilient in the face of Western sanctions, President Vladimir Putin has said. The country is maintaining economic growth while keeping unemployment at record lows and reining in inflation, he told the Russia Calling! Investment Forum on Tuesday.
The economy is expected to grow from 0.5% to 1% this year, Putin said. This is a result of the central bank’s efforts to curb inflation, which is now expected to drop to 6% – well below government forecasts, according to the president.
The banking sector is also expected to show good results this year by generating a profit of around 3.2-3.5 trillion rubles ($41-45 billion), Putin said. The unemployment rate is just 2.2%, he added.
The government and the central bank have a “consensus” on the issues of economic development, according to Putin. Russia’s national debt will remain “one of the lowest in the world,” he said, adding that the nation still managed to secure funding for all the “key priorities,” including social spending, defense and security, and national development projects.
Russia “definitely feels the external pressure. Yet, our nation and our economy successfully meet those challenges,” Putin said, accusing Western nations of resorting to “anti-competitive practices” to retain their “elusive monopoly” on the global markets.
The West has imposed an unprecedented number of sanctions aimed at crippling the Russian economy since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022. Russia maintains that the sanctions failed to destabilize the economy or isolate it from the global financial system.
On Tuesday, Putin said most nations, including India and China, kept a “rational and pragmatic” approach toward working with Russia, resulting in dramatic growth in trade in recent years.
