Figures recently released suggest that the Russian GDP had grown to 5.4% in Q2, based on a year on year comparison. This performance was helped by a surge in demand from domestic consumers, according to its deputy economics minister, Andrei Klepach.
The Russian authorities are expecting that GDP figures for 2010, as a whole, will show a growth of about 4%, but the minister said that the projection may be revised upwards in light of the recent data. "Economic growth continues, but it has not yet become investment oriented," according to Klepach.
In his opinion, the factors for growth remained fragile with the exception of consumer demand. The Russian economy was hard hit by the global recession, shrinking by 7.9% last year alone.
Russian Assets To Go On The Block
In other Russian news, the authorities have announced plans for a $30 billion asset sale through selling off minority stakes in 11 state-owned firms. The partial privatisation will be the biggest sale of state assets since the 1990s, but probably will not take place until the New Year.
Included in the sale will be shares in the oil concern Rosneft; energy pipeline operator Transneft; hydroelectric power concern Rushydro; and financial institutions Sberbank and VTB. In common with many developed countries, Russia is looking to raise funding to reduce its sovereign debt. The Russian Prime minister, Vladimir Putin, has indicated that the Russian debt is likely to remain above 5% of the nation’s GDP for this year.
The decision to sell off state assets reverses a 10 year moratorium, but the firms involved are already partially privatised and the authorities will retain a controlling interest.