27 Aug 2020 15:05

Russian GDP could fall 5%-6% in 2020, but problems have already peaked - Putin

MOSCOW. Aug 27 (Interfax) - The Russian economy could decline 5%-6% in 2020 but the problems in the economy have now peaked and recovery is under way, President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with the Rossiya-1 television channel (VGTRK) on Thursday.

"The whole world economy has faced the serious consequences of this epidemic," Putin said, adding that the global economy might shrink around 5% in 2020.

"In the region of 5%-6%," he said when asked how much the Russian economy might fall.

"Of course it's not been problem-free. I know that some enterprises did not for example get on the list of those that receive support from the state yet they really did suffer. The government must of course think about this and take the necessary decisions." Putin said.

"But I reiterate in general, both support for small businesses and support for selected major sectors - agriculture, automotive, construction and so on where hundreds of thousands, millions of people work and there are cooperative chains - all this has nevertheless been done and done in time, and has had its effect," he said.

"Our key macroeconomic indicators are fairly stable. Despite forecasts of strong fluctuations we only have 3.4% inflation as of today and that's what it'll be, roughly 3.4-3.41%, according to expert estimates," he said.

"Our reserves are growing, despite all the difficulties. This gives us an additional safety net. This is important. It is not a panacea but it is important. It gives us a certain confidence that we can finance our social mandates as well," he said.

All of this means that firstly we consider our problems have already peaked and I hope we will begin to recover gradually. On the whole we differ little from other countries here. I think that next year our recovery will be assured," Putin said.