Russia's economy continues to grow, though momentum has weakened - Central Bank

MOSCOW. May 25 (Interfax) - Russia's economy continues to grow, though not uniform across industries, Kirill Tremasov, director of the monetary policy department of the Central Bank of Russia (CBR), said in a statement on Wednesday.

The business climate indicator declined to 7.9% in May from 9.4% in April after six months of growth, according to the results of the CBR's survey of enterprises. The indicator also remained close to the highest level for the past decade and even slightly exceeded the indicator for March 2023, the CBR said in a commentary.

"Although momentum has weakened, growth continues," Tremasov said when commenting on the dynamics of the index in May. Tremasov's video message has been posted on the CBR's Telegram channel.

Tremasov noted that there is a slowdown in industrial growth, which is especially noticeable in the upstream and mining sector. Growth accelerated in construction, as the business climate indicator peaked for the past 15 years, Tremasov stressed.

The estimates of companies of production and demand in May declined following their noticeable improvement in April, though they remained in positive territory, the CBR notes.