Russia has been growing rapidly. Average earnings have recently been growing at 20% a year and consumption growth has not been far behind this. Moscow apparently has more ‘6-series BMWs’ than any other city in the world. With Vladimir Putin now the prime minister he has promised to rein in inflation and boost social spending on housing and infrastructure. So what are the prospects for Russia in the next decade?
Russia: giant of a new economic world order Observer (25/05/08)
Vladimir Putin pledges to transform economy of Russia into a world leader Times Online (9/05/08)
Putin in 2020 pledge on economy BBC News Online (8/05/08)
Questions
| 1. | Assess the recent economic performance of the Russian economy. |
| 2. | Examine the importance of oil to the Russian economy. What can the Russian government do to reduce the dependence on oil revenues? |
| 3. | Discuss the importance of infrastructure and spending on other social capital for the development of the Russian economy. |