Russia's economy, which has been waging a war on ukraine since 2022, is currently in recession, Russian Economy minister Maxim Reshetnikov warned while speaking at the St. Petersburg international Economic Forum in the country yesterday. Although the Russian economy has been suffering since the Corona pandemic, it began to be severely affected due to the sanctions imposed by the world countries after the war on Ukraine. Following this, as the war between ukraine and russia has increased in the past few months, it has been announced that the country's economy is on the verge of entering recession. Meanwhile, the Russian Central bank cut interest rates this month from 21% to 20% for the first time since 2022 in an effort to stimulate the economy and trade. The rate cut will allow people to borrow at lower rates than before. The rate cut comes after months of complaints from businesspeople and industry that Russia's high interest rates are deterring new investment in the country, slowing economic growth. Russian economic growth slowed to 1.4% in the first quarter of 2025, down from 4.5% in 2024 and 4.3% in 2021. The slowdown was caused by Western sanctions imposed due to the war in Ukraine. The war has also led to high costs and a financial crisis for the Russian government. Russia's defense spending in 2025 has exceeded 8% of the country's total GDP. This has reached a new high since the Soviet era, data shows. As a result, the country's education and health spending are decreasing. After the 2022 invasion of ukraine, $ 300 billion of assets belonging to the Russian Central bank have been frozen by world countries. Meanwhile, the price of Russian crude oil is estimated to fall to $ 48.8 per barrel in 2025. This will reduce the country's government revenue. Due to the war and population decline in russia, unemployment in the country is 2.3%. But at the same time, 73% of companies have complained to the government about a labor shortage. In 2021, Russia's economic growth was 4.3%, and in the first quarter of 2025, economic growth fell to 1.4%, lower than 4.5% (Q4) and 5.4% (Q1) in 2024.

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