Official says Russian economy may shrink 3.5–4% in 2015

MOSCOW, Aug 17 (PRIME) -- Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP) may shrink 3.5–4.0% in 2015 surpassing the government’s official forecast, presidential aide Andrei Belousov said at a youth forum Monday.

“There are various estimates for the year… The Economic Development Ministry’s current estimate is a 2.8% decline. I think that the decline will stand at 3.5–4.0%,” he said.

Economic growth in Russia is limited to 1–2% a year without structural reforms, he also said.

In April–June, the Russian economy contracted 4.6% on the year after a 2.2% decline in January–March.

Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev said earlier in August he did not rule out that the 2015 GDP forecast could be deteriorated because of poor data for April–June, but added he expected the economy to witness better dynamics in July–September.

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