Russian Economy General News: #13

Not only aluminium, but sugarcane sugar, tropical fruits (bananas) too, as well as other products & services where India, as a friendly country of Russia, excels due to its comparative economic advantages, with trade implementation preferably in yuan, dirham, rubles and rupees. It's the BRICS+ international division of labour and economic & trade specialization in full swing:

Why did Russia start buying aluminum from India?, by Olga Samofalova for VZGLYAD. 06.27.2024.

Why did Russia start buying aluminum from India, although it itself is the largest producer and exporter of the metal?

Russia unexpectedly bought aluminum from India. This has not happened since at least 2009, and maybe earlier - there is simply no data for previous periods. Russia itself is the world's largest producer and exporter of aluminum. And given the April sanctions that closed the US and British markets for Russian aluminum, there is definitely no shortage of it within Russia. Why did Russia buy Indian metal?

India has supplied aluminum to Russia for the first time. According to the country's customs service, in April India sold 44.8 thousand tons of unprocessed aluminum to Russian companies for $16.5 million. This is the first supply of metal to Russia since at least 2009; there is no earlier information in the public domain.

This is a very unusual situation, because Russia itself is the world's second largest exporter of this metal. At the end of 2023, it supplied aluminum worth $6.5 billion. At the same time, in April, the United States and Great Britain banned the purchase of aluminum from Russia.

“The situation really looks quite strange. After Rusal came under restrictions from the United States and Great Britain, the company actually must increase supplies to the domestic market, so there should not be a shortage of aluminum there,” says Vladimir Chernov, an analyst at Freedom Finance Global.

Why did Russia start buying aluminum from India when it needs to “build” its own?

The exact reason is still unclear, but there are several possibilities. “Perhaps the deal to purchase aluminum from India was completed before the restrictions were introduced and was justified by an increase in demand for the metal from the Russian defense industry,” Chernov argues.

It is possible that the deal was concluded with the aim of unfreezing some of the stuck rupees of Russian exporters in India.

the expert adds. As you know, India has become the second largest buyer of Russian oil after China and the first if we take into account only sea deliveries. Due to Western financial restrictions, trading has to be done in national currencies. India paid for Russian oil partly in Chinese yuan and Indian rupees. Only in May we agreed to trade in rubles.

And if there are no problems when trading in yuan, then when trading in rupees there are difficulties. It is profitable to trade in local currency when you do not need to make exchange transactions, where part of your income is lost, and when you can buy Chinese goods with the yuan received from oil. However, with rupees earned from oil sales, it will not be possible to buy Indian products. Russia sells a lot of oil to India, but buys very little Indian goods. India has nothing much to offer Russia. Therefore, the export earnings of Russian companies in rupees are stuck in accounts in India. And buying aluminum for rupees could help bring back some of the stuck export earnings.

According to another version, Russian aluminum buyers are trying to create competition through the emergence of a new supplier so that they can bargain with the main supplier of aluminum within Russia, Rusal, so that it does not twist their arms and raise prices.

“In our opinion, Russian aluminum buyers can already bargain with Rusal, since against the backdrop of Western restrictions the company may begin to overstock its warehouses. However, the level of bargaining always remains limited by indicators of production profitability, so it cannot be ruled out that India offered a much more favorable price for its consignment,” says Vladimir Chernov.

Since the beginning of the year, world prices have increased by more than a third, and this could not but hit consumers - manufacturers of automotive components, construction goods, etc.

“After the rise in world prices for aluminum, production costs for aluminum buyers in Russia actually increased. But I would not say that it has become difficult for them, since they usually simply transfer the increase in costs into the final cost of the manufactured product for the buyer, thereby accelerating inflation in the country,” notes an analyst at Freedom Finance Global.

The interesting question is whether this is a one-time purchase of aluminum from India or a new trend.

“If this purchase was made with the aim of unfreezing some of the stuck rupees of Russian exporters in India, then it may well be repeated.

If the aluminum importer from India was simply trying to save money, then perhaps in the future he will be able to negotiate with Rusal on an additional discount on aluminum, and this deal with India will not be repeated,” Chernov believes.

“So far this does not look like a new trend, perhaps just one-time deliveries. We believe that Rusal fully covers the domestic market, and the company has the capacity to increase domestic supplies as demand increases. Pricing for products is based on the principle of export parity, that is, based on world prices for LME, SHFE,” says Akhmed Aliyev, analyst at BCS World of Investments.

It is curious that, according to Rusal itself, the information from Indian customs statistics is most likely erroneous and does not correspond to reality, since there is a discrepancy between the customs value of the goods and the indicated weight. In India, domestic demand for aluminum is growing very strongly, so an increase in exports in the volumes shown in customs statistics seems unlikely, the press service of Rusal said.

In general, the aluminum industry in Russia, despite the sanctions, has good prospects for this year. The Aluminum Association predicts an increase in domestic demand for aluminum in 2024 against the backdrop of an increase in its consumption in the construction industry and in large-scale projects at the federal and regional levels for capital construction, renovation of housing stock, renewal of park, urban and transport infrastructure.

“Against the backdrop of increasing domestic demand, metal prices in Russia should continue to rise, but restrictions on Rusal will create a surplus of this metal in Russia and restrain them from rapid price increases,” notes Chernov.

But aluminum exports from Russia may fall in 2024, since it is not possible to immediately redirect all volumes of export products to alternative foreign markets. However, gradually this will certainly happen, otherwise Russian warehouses will become overstocked, and an imbalance of supply and demand will form on the world market, which is why prices will continue to rise, the source concludes.

https://vz.ru/economy/2024/6/27/1275028.html

Russia's GDP growth in the first half of the year will be about 5%, Putin said, 06.28.2024.

Putin said that Russian GDP growth in the first half of the year will be about five percent.

Solnechnogorsk (Moscow region), June 28 - RIA Novosti. Russia's GDP growth in the first half of the year will be about five percent, Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with graduates of the RANEPA's personnel management reserve program.

“The result that we are now demonstrating is 3.6% growth last year, for the first half of this year it will be over 5. Well, the first quarter was 5.4, in my opinion, we’ll see what happens in the first half of the year. But also where- then the country’s GDP growth will be around 5%,” he noted.

In May, Rosstat reported that the country's gross domestic product growth in the first quarter accelerated to 5.4 percent year-on-year from 4.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023. The agency's preliminary data fully coincided with the previously announced estimate of the Ministry of Economic Development . This year, according to the ministry's forecasts, GDP will grow by 2.8 percent.

The Central Bank, in turn, expects this figure to be in the range of 2.5-3.5 percent (the previous estimate was one to two percent).
GDP (gross domestic product) is the total monetary value of all final goods and services produced and sold by a country in a given period of time.

At the end of May, the World Bank updated data on purchasing power parity indicators: it follows that Russia has already become the fourth economy in the world in 2021 with a share of 3.8 percent of global GDP, displacing Japan (3.7 percent) and Germany (3 .4 percent). In 2022-2023, the situation remained the same, RIA Novosti calculated.

https://ria.ru/20240628/vvp-1956193969.html

Motherfuckers thrive in war. Everything is truly backwards in Putin's Russia.

Russia's actual share of global GDP is higher than 3.8%. Remove Russia and its exports and imports and the rest of the world economy shrinks. In fact the
footprint is likely over 6%.

The World Bank raises Russia's category from upper middle income to high income, 07.01.2024.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The World Bank (WB) announced on July 1 that it changed Russia's category from upper-middle income to high-income.

"This year, three countries - Bulgaria, Palau and Russia - moved from the upper-middle income category to the high-income category," the agency said in a report.

The Russian economy in 2023 was marked by an increase in activity related to the military sector.

The growth was also driven by a recovery in trade (6.8%), the financial sector (8.7%) and construction (6.6%), the text adds.

These factors contributed to Russia registering a 3.6% increase in gross domestic product (GDP) and a 10.9% increase in nominal GDP, the World Bank says.

Yandex Translate from Spanish.

https://latamnews.lat/20240701/el-banco-mundial-eleva-categoria-de-rusia-de-renta-media-alta-a-renta-alta-1155847835.html

Mishustin: Russia's economy is growing significantly faster than predicted, 07.12.2024.

Mishustin: economic growth rates are significantly higher than forecasts.

MOSCOW, July 12 — RIA Novosti. The Russian economy is growing at a significantly higher rate than predicted in forecasts, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said at a meeting on economic issues.

"If we take the statistics for five months, the gross domestic product has increased by five percent compared to the same period last year. This is significantly higher than forecasts, despite all attempts to hinder us," he said.

According to the Prime Minister, the country is experiencing very high consumer activity, primarily due to the growth of private incomes. But this same factor is affecting the growth of inflation, Mishustin noted.

"As of July 1, it was 4.5 percent since the beginning of the year. Colleagues, we must constantly address this issue, the standard of living of our citizens depends on it," the head of government urged.

He stressed that it is necessary to constantly monitor the macroeconomic situation and, if necessary, promptly adjust the action plan in this area in cooperation with the Central Bank.

In May, Rosstat reported that in the first quarter, GDP growth accelerated to 5.4 percent in annual terms (in the fourth quarter of 2023, it was 4.9 percent). By the end of the year, the Ministry of Economic Development expects the indicator to grow by 2.8 percent, and the Central Bank predicts 2.5-3.5 percent.

https://ria.ru/20240712/vvp-1959177840.html

Regarding the Indian aluminum, it is related to accumulation of rupees. They essentially have to be spent in India. So buying more from India makes
sense as long as it does not undercut Russian economic activity. It is not a zero sum game.

Like I said, they should just build factories in India and export products back to Russia.
To take advantage of Indian labor. Which is something Russia lacks.

Correcting the trade imbalance with India is in Russia's favor.

lancelot wrote:Like I said, they should just build factories in India and export products back to Russia.
To take advantage of Indian labor. Which is something Russia lacks.

Correcting the trade imbalance with India is in Russia's favor.

That's an absolutely great idea. It not only solves Russia's workforce deficit challenge and trade imbalance but also makes India less likely to even consider sanctioning Russia as this would hit them hard.

"Significantly higher than forecasts": Mishustin announced Russian economy growth of 5% from the beginning of 2024, by Vladimir Tsegoev, Ksenia Chemodanova for Russian RT. 07.12.2024.

Mishustin announced Russia's GDP growth by 5% in the first five months of 2024.

From January to May 2024, the Russian economy grew by 5% compared to the same period in 2023, said Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. According to him, the dynamics remain high and exceed forecasts, despite attempts at external pressure. Steady growth is observed in most industries, especially in the manufacturing industry. Companies, in turn, receive high profits and increase investment. Against this background, more and more international organizations have recently improved their assessments of the prospects of the Russian economy.

In the face of growing external pressure, the Russian economy continues to grow confidently. This was stated by the country's Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin on Friday, July 12.

"The dynamics remain high. In May, growth accelerated slightly compared to April — to 4.5%. If we take statistics for five months, the gross domestic product has added 5% compared to the same period last year. This is significantly higher than forecasts, despite all attempts from outside to hinder us," Mishustin noted at a meeting on economic issues.

According to the Ministry of Economic Development, confident growth from January to May was observed in most industries. For example, the volume of paid services to the population increased by 4% year-on-year, construction work added 4.6%, catering - 5.1%, industry - 5.2%, manufacturing - 8.8%, retail trade - 9.3%, and wholesale - 12.3%.

Moreover, in some segments of the economy, growth rates for the first five months of 2024 were calculated in double digits. For example, this includes the production of electrical equipment (+10.1%), beverages (+11.2%), furniture (+17.9%), finished metal products (+37.4%), as well as computers, electronics and optics (+39.3%).

"What is very important is that investment continues to grow. This means that a good foundation for the future is being created. According to the results of the first quarter, they increased by almost 15% - mainly due to machinery and equipment, investments in intellectual property," the head of the Cabinet said.

According to him, against the backdrop of increased profits, Russian companies have become more active in investing in the development of their businesses and regions. Along with this, the Prime Minister also noted high consumer activity, primarily due to the growth of private incomes.

"However, this same factor also contributes to the growth of inflation. As of July 1, it was 4.5% since the beginning of the year. Colleagues, we must constantly address this issue. The standard of living of our citizens depends on it," Mishustin addressed the meeting participants.

Earlier, the government predicted that Russia's GDP would increase by 2.8% in 2024. However, given current trends, the real growth rate may be higher, the country's Finance Minister Anton Siluanov does not rule out.

“We have had a good start to the year... So, perhaps, we will be able to exceed the levels that were initially included in the economic forecasts,” the head of the Ministry of Finance suggested in an interview with RT .

It is noteworthy that recently more and more international organizations have been improving their forecasts regarding the prospects of the Russian economy. For example, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expected the country's GDP to increase by 2.6% by the end of 2024 back in winter, and now believes that growth could be 3.2%. In turn, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) revised its estimate from 1.8 to 2.6%, the European Commission from 1.6 to 2.9%, and the World Bank from 1.3 to 2.9%.

"Most likely, it will not be possible to maintain the rate close to 5%, since economic growth will slow down in the second half of the year. This is due to the fact that in the second half of last year we had very strong dynamics, and, accordingly, there will be a higher base for comparison. Nevertheless, by the end of 2024, we can reach somewhere around 3.2-3.5%, which will be higher than the global average and the levels of developed countries," Georgy Ostapkovich, director of the Center for Market Research at the Institute for Statistical Studies and Economics of Knowledge at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, told RT.

Overall, the expert believes that the Russian economy has successfully adapted to the sanctions. Thus, the government and the Central Bank have provided businesses with the necessary conditions for stable operation, and companies have "demonstrated flexibility" and have been able to adapt to the changed circumstances by establishing new supply chains and payment mechanisms.

"We managed to minimize losses from sanctions largely due to high business activity. At the same time, Western countries continue to increase pressure on Russia, although they themselves are also seriously suffering from their own restrictions, especially in the energy sector. But, apparently, they think it's worth it," Ostapkovich added.

"The economy has been reconfigured"

Today, there are over 21,000 different sanctions against Russia (about 18,500 of which were introduced since February 2022, after the start of a special military operation). This is more than against Iran, Syria, North Korea, Belarus, Venezuela, Myanmar and Cuba combined, according to information from the specialized Castellum.AI database.

The restrictions affected, in particular, energy, aviation, trade, banking and the financial sector. Along with this, almost half of Russia's gold and foreign exchange reserves (approximately $300 billion) were frozen, and many international companies announced their departure from the Russian Federation.

In these conditions, some analysts initially predicted a 10-25% collapse of the Russian economy in 2022. However, the actual decline was only 1.2% and was even less profound than in the pandemic year of 2020 (2.7%) and the crisis years of 2015 (2%) and 2009 (7.8%). Moreover, in 2023, the country's GDP fully recouped the sanctions losses and immediately added 3.6% .

For comparison: the global economy grew by only 3.2% last year, while the aggregate indicator of the G7 countries added only 1.7%, and the EU countries only 0.6%, according to IMF data. Moreover, according to the fund's forecast, the overall picture will remain approximately the same this year: the world's GDP may grow by 3.2%, the G7 by 1.7%, and the EU by 1.1%. Moreover, the leading European economies - Germany, France and Italy - will show almost zero growth, the organization does not rule out.

"For the West, the sanctions resulted in a serious increase in prices for energy resources . This led to partial deindustrialization and problems in energy-intensive industries, primarily in Europe. In our country, despite the sanctions, we still have some problems, mainly related to payments, but overall, we have managed to reconfigure the economy," said Sergei Suverov, associate professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, in an interview with RT.

According to him, today export deliveries have mainly reoriented to Asian markets, and production is becoming less dependent on imports and is trying to focus on the domestic market as well. At the same time, the final structural transformation of the economy has not yet been completed and will require some time, Georgy Ostapkovich believes.

"We are now moving from a raw materials model to a supply economy, that is, we are starting to supply goods with a high degree of processing and added value to world markets. We are talking about products of the manufacturing industry and highly intellectual services. This is exactly what economically developed countries earn money on. A successful economy cannot be built on the export of raw materials alone, but for a qualitative transition, we need to invest in education and increase the birth rate so that in the future more qualified and young employees enter the labor market," Ostapkovich concluded.

https://russian.rt.com/business/article/1340335-pravitelstvo-rossiya-ekonomika-rost

Russia in Top Ten for Trade Surplus in 2023, 07.13.2024.

World Bank data shows 43 countries achieved a trade surplus last year with China topping the list, while 72 were in deficit, with the US ratching up the largest deficit of $1.1 trillion.

Russia earned $121 billion in trade surplus last year, placing it seventh in the global ranking, according to World Bank data analyzed by Sputnik.

Globally, countries exported a net total of $23.3 trillion worth of goods and imported $22.9 trillion, resulting in a trade surplus of $365 billion.

In total, 43 countries achieved a trade surplus, with a combined amount of $2.5 trillion.

China earned the most from trade, achieving a trade surplus of $594 billion. Next were Germany with a surplus of $245.3 billion and Ireland with net trade earnings of $178 billion, respectively. The top five also included Singapore ($155 billion) and Switzerland ($131 billion). Saudi Arabia ranked sixth with $127 billion.

The Netherlands ($97 billion), Australia ($83 billion), and Brazil ($81 billion) rounded out the top ten.

Conversely, 72 countries experienced trade deficits, collectively amounting to $2.3 trillion.

The United States saw the largest deficit of $1.1 trillion, followed by India with $245 billion, the UK with $232 billion, France with $88 billion, and Turkiye with $87 billion.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240713/russia-in-top-ten-for-trade-surplus-in-2023-1119361084.html

Ireland with net trade earnings of $178 billion, respectively. The top five also included Singapore ($155 billion) and Switzerland ($131 billion).

Money laundering is considered export. 

Indeed, Ireland's "miracle economy" is all about its banking sector which functions as an offshore money haven. So we have the magical financial
industry being counted as if it was a real industry. Money is money but the real economy is not a fiction created by money.

Russian exports to India break all-time record, 07.16.2024.

Russia supplied more than $7 billion worth of goods to India in May, thanks to which the volume of trade exchanges between the two countries increased to a record $7.5 billion, according to data from the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry analyzed by Sputnik.

Russia's exports to India in May 2024 are 18% higher than last year. At the same time, supplies from Indian companies to Russia also increased to $425.4 million.

As a result, trade between the two countries reached a historic level of $7.5 billion. Previously, the highest levels were recorded in May 2023, in February 2024 and in March 2024, with 6,300 million dollars.

At the same time, supplies from Russia to India grew by 11.4%, to $28.7 billion, in the first five months of this year. Only China exceeds this figure, the Asian country exported goods worth 41,100 million dollars to India.

Indian exports have increased by a quarter, to 2,000 million dollars, since the beginning of 2024. Russia remains in the 29th place among the recipients of products from India. The top 5 importers of Indian products are the United States ($34.9 billion), the United Arab Emirates ($16.6 billion), the Netherlands ($12 billion), Singapore ($8.1 billion) and China ($7.3 billion).

The volume of trade between Russia and India from January to May increased by 12%, to 30,700 million dollars, which is 48% of the trade of the whole of last year.

Yandex Translate from Spanish.

https://latamnews.lat/20240716/exportaciones-rusas-a-india-baten-record-historico-1156182816.html

The trade is still one sided. They need to work better on improving Indian exports.

Russia is becoming a country of new and high-speed roads[/b], by Dmitry Skvortsov, Andrey Rezchikov for VZGLYAD. 07.16.2024.

High-speed traffic bypassing Tver and Tolyatti will strengthen Russia's economy and logistics.

For the first time in its history, Russia has received traffic light-free high-speed through traffic from St. Petersburg through Moscow to Kazan. This became possible after the commissioning of a section of the M-11 highway that bypasses Tver. At the same time, the "Tolyatti bypass" was launched, which will become part of the "Europe - Western China" corridor. "Previously, such a pace of road construction was unimaginable," experts say.

On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin opened traffic on a section of the Northern Bypass of Tver on the M-11 Neva highway, and also launched traffic on a new highway bypassing Tolyatti via videoconference.

The construction of the M-11 Neva highway, designed to become a faster and more convenient backup to the M-10 Moscow-St. Petersburg highway, began back in 2010. From 2014 to 2019, eight sections were commissioned one after another. However, the highway still had a gap - an unfinished section from the 149th to the 208th km, which was supposed to lead the highway around Tver.

Construction of the last section of the road began in the spring of 2022. And now on Tuesday, the section from the 149th km of the M-11 to the intersection with the Bezhetsk Highway, 28.6 km long, was commissioned. The northern bypass of Tver has become the last element necessary to launch seamless high-speed traffic from the west to the east of the country - from St. Petersburg to Kazan. Thanks to the bypass of Tver, travel time from St. Petersburg to Moscow will be reduced by 30-60 minutes.

The existing M-10 highway led directly through the city, which caused inconvenience to drivers who were forced to slow down and waste time at traffic lights and in city traffic jams. The large traffic of transit trucks and the flow of cars contributed to the growth of these traffic jams, annoying Tver residents as well. Therefore, the issue of building a bypass would have arisen sooner or later, even if the M-11 highway had not been built.

At the same time, the construction of bypasses of large cities is organizationally more complicated than laying a route through forest thickets. Builders have to overcome not so much the terrain features as solve problems of land allocations (and the purchase of lands necessary for the construction of the road), problems with utility lines falling within the road construction zone. Thus, during the construction of the bypass of Tver, it was necessary to relocate gas pipelines and reconstruct a section of the power transmission line (and before that, the need for these works had to be agreed with gas and power engineers).

In addition, Tver is an important center of the Old Russian state (at one time the Tver principality competed with Moscow for the right to become the center of gathering Russian lands). And large-scale construction on the lands adjacent to the city should be preceded by archaeological research, so that construction work does not destroy the historical heritage.

Archaeologists paid much attention to the study of the location of the "Selishche Romanovo I", which existed in these places in the 17th-19th centuries. In addition, detailed excavations were carried out in the area of ​​the villages of Novenkoe and Zhornovka, where the legacy of several eras was studied, in particular the Iron and Stone Ages. The burial mounds located in this area date back to the 7th-5th centuries BC (the Novenkoe-1 group, which includes 23 mounds) or the 5th millennium BC (the Novenkoe-2 site).

The bypass had to be integrated into the existing transport network around Tver. In particular, it was necessary to select the intersections with the existing roads "Tver - Kimry", "Tver - Bezhetsk - Vesyegonsk - Ustyuzhna" and "Mednoe - Kulitskoe", the M-10 highway, and also to design interchanges.

When planning the construction of the Tver bypass, a total of 30 different artificial structures were designed, including four interchanges, two bridge crossings across the Tvertsa (214 and 144 meters long), and most importantly, a new bridge across the Volga.

This is the largest structure of the entire commissioned section. The bridge is 738 meters long and 24 meters wide. The bridge stands on 10 supports and consists of three sections: the left-bank overpass, the channel part, and the right-bank overpass. In the channel part, the span height above the water reaches 17 meters, which will make it possible to pass large cruise liners under the bridge during the navigation season.

In Tver, the launch of the Northern Bypass was greeted with great joy, as it relieves the city of transit trucks. The Governor of the Tver Region, Igor Rudenya, more succinctly assesses the importance of this section for the region's economy: "This is our transport corridor, which will be connected to a large machine-building cluster, which includes the Tver Carriage Works and enterprises of the technology park. The project also has enormous economic significance for the development of the north-east of the Tver Region."

After the launch of the bypass around Tver, it became possible not only to travel along the M-11 highway from St. Petersburg to Moscow without traffic lights and intersections, but also further along the M-12 motorway past Nizhny Novgorod to Kazan, and in 2025 – to Yekaterinburg.

Later, M-12 is planned to be extended to Tyumen. Seamless high-speed traffic in the North-South direction from St. Petersburg to Krasnodar (2120 km) and the Azov-Black Sea coast via the Central Ring Road, then along the M-4 Don highway will now be provided.

President Vladimir Putin spoke about future plans back in February 2023 in his address to the Federal Assembly: “A decision has already been made to extend the Moscow-Kazan expressway to Yekaterinburg, Chelyabinsk and Tyumen, and in the future – to Irkutsk and Vladivostok, with access to Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China, which will also significantly expand our economic ties with the markets of Southeast Asia.”

Also on Tuesday, the Russian leader opened traffic on the new Togliatti Bypass road and the bridge across the Volga as part of the Europe – Western China transport corridor in the Samara Region. Construction began at the end of 2019 on Putin’s instructions.

This section will relieve congestion on the road at the Zhigulevskaya hydroelectric power station dam.

Tolyatti Bypass is a high-speed four-lane highway 99.7 km long with an exit to the federal highway M-5 "Ural". The facility includes three interchanges and 39 bridges and overpasses, including a bridge crossing over the Volga with a length of 3.7 km. The bridge crosses the Kuibyshev Reservoir near the settlements of Klimovka in the Shigonsky District on the right bank and Podstepki in the Stavropol District on the left bank. The maximum throughput of the highway is 40 thousand cars per day.

As Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin stated, the opening of the bypass roads of Tver and Tolyatti is of key importance for the development of the Russian economy. According to him, more than 5% of the country's population lives on the M-11 Moscow-St. Petersburg and M-12 Moscow-Kazan highways.

But there are new projects ahead. In 2025, the M-12 highway will be extended from Yekaterinburg to Tyumen. Later, as RIA Novosti notes , according to Khusnullin, it is planned to build a highway from Tyumen to Omsk, "bypassing Tyumen and bypassing Omsk." In addition, he spoke about plans to launch a bypass of Naberezhnye Chelny by the end of this year with the possibility of reaching Yekaterinburg. The bypass of Nizhnekamsk and Naberezhnye Chelny will be part of the M-12 highway - the high-speed route Kazan - Yekaterinburg - Tyumen, the length of which through the territory of Tatarstan will be about 300 km.

"Many remember the times when we considered ourselves a country of bad roads, and objectively it was so. But now road construction has made a huge step forward, and this is one of the conditions for the growth of the entire Russian economy,"

– says Anna Fedorova, political scientist, expert at EISI. “Roads are being built at a really fast pace. This concerns not only the highway between Moscow and St. Petersburg, but also other important areas,” the expert continued. “However, it is not only the pace that is important, but also the quality of construction. Now it is comparable or even superior to European models, which we previously looked back at with longing.”

Fedorova emphasized that the M-11 Neva highway is "one of the strategically important highways." "This highway is important from the point of view of logistics, business, travel, and so on. Therefore, every hour that can be saved is a huge achievement," the speaker explained.

According to her, bypass roads are useful for cities – not only drivers benefit, saving time and fuel, but also residents, because there are fewer cars on the streets. The expert noted Vladimir Putin’s decision to attend the opening of the Northern Bypass of Tver on the M-11 Neva highway behind the wheel of a Russian Lada Aura. “This is the right symbolism, which emphasizes the significance of the M-11 highway and the importance for the president to personally check the quality of the road, which will be used by millions of citizens,” the political scientist explained.

At the same time, Fedorova called the bypass of Tolyatti a contribution to the turn of the Russian economy to the East. "For the turn to become a reality, a lot of preparatory work needs to be done. In particular, we are talking about the construction of the "Europe - Western China" corridor. This section of the road was built simultaneously in all areas. Previously, such a pace was unimaginable," the expert added.

https://vz.ru/society/2024/7/16/1277810.html

Ruble sets new records in foreign trade, by Olga Samofalova for VZGLYAD. 07.18.2024.

The currency structure of our trade has changed dramatically in recent years. The Central Bank reported new records for the ruble and friendly currencies in foreign trade. This spring, they have been setting new records almost every month. At the same time, the share of toxic currencies in foreign trade has remained at a minimum level for all three spring months. What does trade look like now and why have other countries begun to trust the ruble more?

The currency structure of foreign trade settlements continues to change in favor of the ruble. Now Russia buys a record 41.8% of imports for rubles (Central Bank data for May 2024). For comparison: in 2021, we paid for imports mainly in dollars and euros, in 2022 the share of the ruble increased to 28.1%, and in 2023 - to 30%. This year, import purchases for rubles can easily reach half or even more.

The share of the ruble is especially growing when paying for imports from Asian countries: here it reached a new maximum of 37.7%. In 2023, the share of the ruble reached 22.3%. At the same time, the share of currencies of unfriendly countries (dollar and euro) in imports fell to a new minimum of 25.6%.

New records were also set for export contracts. Thus, the share of friendly currencies in exports increased to 45.4%, and the share of toxic currencies set a new anti-record, falling to 17.6%. Looking back, the currencies of friendly countries were generally almost invisible in Russia's foreign trade until 2022. In 2021, their share was only 1-1.3%. In 2022, their share grew to 8.6%, and in 2023 there was a colossal increase: almost 3.5 times - to 29.4%, and already in the first half of 2024 - to 45.4%.

Asian countries are actively paying for Russian exports in friendly currencies. According to the results of May 2024, for the first time, more than half of payments received from Asia were made in the currencies of friendly countries - 52.9%. European countries are paying more and more rubles for Russian exports. The new maximum share of the ruble was 62.7%. This is already significantly more than half.

If we compare with the figures for 2021, we can see a colossal increase in the share of the ruble. For comparison: in 2021, the share of the ruble for the export of goods and services from Russia was only 14.3%, in 2022 it grew to 27.8%, in 2023 - to 39%, and this year the growth trend continues.

The share of toxic currencies - the dollar and the euro - in exports continues to fall. If in 2021 it reached 84.6%, then in 2022 it was already 63.6%, and in 2023 it fell more than half - to 31.5%. All three spring months, the share of payments in toxic currencies in foreign trade remained at minimum levels - below 21%.

"The share of the ruble and currencies of friendly economies in Russia's foreign trade until the spring of 2022 was indeed extremely low. The ruble's share for imports did not exceed 10%, for exports - 5-7%. The yuan was practically not involved in settlements for Russian exports, and in settlements for imports, the yuan's share did not exceed 5%.

However, as new trade relations are established, the share of currencies of friendly countries is also growing,” notes Vladimir Evstifeev, head of the analytical department of Zenit Bank.

But the most significant indicator, according to him, is the growth of the ruble share in settlements for both exports and imports. "Because settlements in rubles partially offset the effect of external restrictions and the negative impact on mutual trade, and also reduce the dependence of the payment infrastructure on the currencies of unfriendly economies," says Yevstifeyev. Among the obvious problems, he names the country specifics of a number of currencies, in particular, the constant devaluation of the Turkish lira or, for example, the weak convertibility of the Indian rupee.

Why was it in the spring of 2024 that the ruble set record after record for its share in trade settlements abroad every month?

"This spring, demand for settlements in rubles increased, most likely due to US sanctions against Russian banks and financial infrastructure, which caused difficulties in paying for imports even in the national currencies of Russian counterparties. This is the reason for the even higher demand for rubles, since payments in rubles are more difficult to track from the US and Europe," says Natalia Milchakova, leading analyst at Freedom Finance Global.

She names three reasons why other countries agree to accept payment for their goods in rubles. "Firstly, because they are interested in supplying their goods to the huge Russian market, secondly, because there is an opportunity to earn money on parallel export of goods from unfriendly countries, thirdly, and this is the most important, because countries friendly to Russia, primarily the EAEU and BRICS, have significantly increased their trust in the ruble. Russia is the fourth economy in the world, and it also shows growth rates higher than the global economy, inflation, although growing, is quite controllable, not like in Turkey. Therefore, BRICS partners and other friendly countries trust the ruble," says Natalia Milchakova.

On the other hand, there is growing mistrust in the US dollar in the world, which also contributes to the growth of demand for settlements in rubles and national currencies. "Trust in the US dollar in the world is falling primarily because of restrictions, but also because of the huge US government debt and fears that over time the US may default on its government debt, and then the dollar will collapse," says Milchakova.

Experts are confident that the trend towards an increase in the share of the ruble and friendly currencies in foreign trade will not go away. "The main countries – counterparties of the Russian Federation in foreign trade – declare their intentions to replace the dollar in foreign trade with local currencies. This means that there is still potential for breaking records," says Yevstifeyev.

"As long as restrictions remain in place, the demand for settlements in rubles between the BRICS and EAEU countries, in our opinion, will definitely grow. But perhaps within a few years, other forms of settlements will appear - in digital currencies, including state digital currencies.

At least, BRICS is already working on a common platform for cross-border settlements, and it is quite possible that after some time it could become the basis for fundamentally new forms of settlements between countries in mutual trade,” concludes Milchakova.

In Russia, apparently, they understand very well the importance of developing a digital currency that can help bypass the financial restrictions of the West. At a meeting on the economy on July 17, President Vladimir Putin gave instructions "not to miss the moment, promptly adjust the legal framework and regulation, develop infrastructure, create conditions for the circulation of digital assets, both within the country and in relations with foreign partners." A pilot project has already been launched in Russia, in which 13 banks, 600 people and 30 legal entities in 11 cities of Russia are participating. More than 27 thousand transfers and 7 thousand payments for services have already been made using the digital ruble. In September, it was decided to expand the pilot project, to which new banks will join.

https://vz.ru/economy/2024/7/18/1277957.html

Dollars and euros are pieces of paper with strings attached so that the clowns running the EU and the USA can yank them out of your wallet on a
whim.   International trade requires independent transaction media.   Simple pieces of gold or silver could serve this purpose under ideal conditions
but there are serious limitations including weight and availability.  

The problem with fiat currencies is that they can lose value overnight.   So there is a risk using them for trade.   That is one of the reasons why the
dollar became established globally.  It could be considered reliable.   The ruble does not have this reputation but Russia's power and economic prosperity
could give it that shine.   However, the world needs trade instruments like the "unit" which gold backed and not prone to geopolitical manipulation.

"Russia in talks to export electric buses to Peru", by Ekaterina Khamova for Izvestia. 07.23.2024.

Trade Representative of the Russian Federation in the country Pavel Dorokhin - about the opportunities of its market for our business.

Russian electric buses may appear in Peru. Lima and Moscow are negotiating this issue, Pavel Dorokhin, the Russian trade representative in the Latin American country, told Izvestia. The local market is open to Russian IT companies, projects in the mining industry and medicine. In particular, according to the trade representative, Lima is interested in Russian Smart City technologies. In addition, Lima wants to cooperate with the EAEU. About the specifics of doing business in the Latin American country, new projects and settlements in national currencies - in an exclusive interview with Pavel Dorokhin to Izvestia.

"Russian business is actively developing the Peruvian market"

— What projects are Russian entrepreneurs involved in in Peru today?

— Peru has an actively developing market where new technologies, particularly Russian ones, are in demand. The scooter rental service Whoosh launched its services in the Peruvian capital. Many people in Lima are now using scooters from the Russian company.

In addition, Moscow and Lima are currently discussing the entry of our Smart City technologies into the Peruvian market. Russia is also negotiating the export of electric buses to Peru.

In Russia, the Smart City project has existed since 2018 as part of the national project Housing and Urban Environment and the national program Digital Economy. Among other things, the project involves the digitalization of urban and municipal infrastructure.

Projects related to the supply of medical equipment and projects related to the mining industry are enjoying success. In addition, wireless Internet technologies from WOW Group are being distributed in Peruvian cities. Some airports even have advertisements for our companies.

Russian business is actively developing the Peruvian market and will continue to do so.

How do you assess the opportunities for Russian entrepreneurs in the Peruvian market?

— The Peruvian market is very open. The economic model that the Peruvian government is building is very liberal, so there are no restrictions in the form of additional taxes, the country offers benefits for entrepreneurs.

The state only monitors safety and carries out the necessary control. We invite entrepreneurs to enter the Peruvian market, the trade mission will only help in this.

I think this is a very good market for Russian entrepreneurs, one of the best, where the only problem can be with a parallel competitor who is able to offer similar products. Yandex has dealt with this problem by offering a taxi price lower than its competitors.

What areas do you think are promising for Russian entrepreneurs?

— Russian businessmen can do business in the mining sector. This sector is open to entrepreneurs. Some Russian companies are now actively entering the gold, copper, and silver mining market.

“Several dozen Peruvian companies are currently operating on the Russian market”

— Is Peru considering the possibility of switching to national currencies in foreign trade transactions?

— This issue is not being considered yet. We find schemes to receive payment in the currency that is needed. Entrepreneurs always find a way to make payments. No one has any problems with this.

Is Peru interested in cooperation with the Russian Federation in some economic organizations? For example, in the EAEU?

Peru is interested in cooperating with the EAEU. There have already been several trips by the Russian delegation to Peru and the Peruvian delegation to Russia to discuss cooperation opportunities (in 2015, Peru signed a memorandum of understanding with the Eurasian Economic Commission. — Izvestia).

— What is Peru ready to supply to Russia?

— Peru is an agro-industrial country. Lima is ready to supply mainly minerals and a huge amount of fruit and berry products — blueberries, bilberries, avocados. Bananas and coffee, cocoa and natural dyes, which are extracted from plants in the jungles of Peru, are also presented in smaller quantities on our market.

In 2023, agricultural exports from Peru to Russia amounted to $59 million, and from Russia to Peru - $67 million. The Latin American country supplied Russia with more than 8 thousand tons of avocados, 4.9 thousand tons of fresh strawberries, 44 tons of red dye, 950 tons of coffee, 3.1 thousand tons of citrus fruits, 2.6 thousand tons of mango, 249 tons of blueberries, 1.2 thousand tons of ginger, 1.1 thousand tons of quinoa. In 2023, Russia sent more than 180 thousand tons of wheat and about 1 ton of concentrated coffee to Peru.

How many Peruvian companies operate on the Russian market?

— I can’t say that there are many; however, there are joint companies. Several dozen Peruvian companies are currently operating on the Russian market.

https://iz.ru/1731111/ekaterina-khamova/rossiia-vedet-peregovory-ob-eksporte-elektrobusov-v-peru

Russian budget revenues growing, no spare money — Putin, 07.23.2024.

"I very much expect that you will keep a close eye on the financial discipline," the Russia president noted, addressing Kovalchuk.

MOSCOW, July 23. /TASS/. Russian budget revenues are growing but there is no spare money in the country, President Vladimir Putin said at the meeting with chairman of the Russian Accounts Chamber Boris Kovalchuk.

"Yes, we have the budget revenues growing, and the deficit is minimal, non-oil and gas revenues have a good performance, oil and gas ones have the incremental growth but there is no spare money," the head of state said.

"Therefore, I very much expect that you will keep a close eye on the financial discipline," Putin added, addressing Kovalchuk.

https://tass.com/economy/1820201

Rosstat: There are no families left in Russia that don’t have enough money for food, by Laura Keffer for Kommersant. 07.24.2024.

The share of Russian households that have enough money to meet all their needs increased to 3.4% in 2023. This is the second result in history after 3.5% in 2019, RIA Novosti reports , citing Rosstat. According to its data, for the first time in Russia there are no households left that do not have enough money for food.

The number of families who have enough money for food, clothing and consumer durables, but do not have enough money to buy a car, apartment or summer house, has increased to 36.6%. This figure has grown by two percentage points. The share of those who cannot afford consumer durables has decreased from 49.7% to 48.7%. The number of families who could buy food but had difficulty buying clothes and paying for housing and utilities has decreased from 12.9% to 11.2%.

As reported by RBC, Rosstat will more carefully monitor the income and expenses of Russians and change the assessment methodology. When taking into account expenses, the federal service will probably start using data from retail chains. In addition, Rosstat is looking for a way to increase the coverage of households with "relatively high incomes." According to the Central Bank, in July, household inflation expectations increased significantly again.

https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/6851170