Economist Dmitry Prokofiev in his interview to the internet portal dp.ru told about the current economic situation on the Russian market. For the first time since November 2009, there is a wage decrease in Russia. 5 years ago, the growth of wages was presented as a sign of overcoming the economic recession, but now, for some reason, no one says that the wages decrease is a symptom of a new recession.
Wages have been decreasing for 2 months already. On an average, in September wages went down by 1%, in August – by 1.2%, but in some industries they decreased by 4-5%.
Retail trade also slowed down, in the first quarter it increased by 3.6%, in the second – by 1.9%, and in the third – only by 1.4%.
At the same time, inflation is growing. In September, the official inflation rate in Russia was 8% (that is the highest rate for the last 3 years). The fastest growth of prices can be seen in food sector. During January-September 2013, the inflation rate in this sector was 2.2%, this year it is 7.1%. Car production in Russia, the growth of which we saw recent years, in September fell by 18%.
The Russians began to buy less. According to Romir agency, in September 2014 everyday consumer spending decreased by 6% in nominal terms compared to August 2014. Non-food consumer goods sales decreased by 17%. At the same time, the Russians began to buy more electronic devices, while prices for them are still the same.
Even the Russian market of luxury goods decreased (the recession if 2008-2009 almost did not influence it). In 2013, it was 10th in the world and fifth in Europe, but this year, as analysts predict it will decrease by 18%.