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Russia may be one of GDP growth leaders among developed countries in 2023

According to Maxim Reshetnikov, the IMF predicts that developed economies would grow at a rate of 1.3-1.6%

MOSCOW, May 4. /TASS/. By the end of 2023, Russia may be one of the leaders among developed countries in terms of economic growth, Russian Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov said on Thursday.

"The forecast for the global economy's growth rate in 2023 - the IMF predicts that developed economies would grow at a rate of 1.3-1.6%. However, our forecast is 1.2%, but there is a peculiarity. We are still a bit more conservative, because we still take into account the budget and some risks. … So, in terms of economic growth, I believe we will be one of the leaders among developed countries by the end of the year," the minister said at a meeting with the President of Russia Vladimir Putin.

Reshetnikov emphasized that an economic development decline in the Eurozone is unavoidable when assessing forecasts. "Because such a sudden forced energy transition caused by the rejection of our energy sources generally undermines the foundations of many European industries' competitiveness. As a result, European consumers and the European economy will surely have to pay for this in the end, as it is all manifested - what we have been saying all these years," the minister stated.

In turn, Putin noted that Russia’s inflation rate and public debt level are better than in a number of other countries. "Our national debt-to-GDP ratio is [just] 14.9%. That is a good indicator," Putin noted. "[We have] 14.9% in Russia, [versus] 121.7% in the US, 90.9% in the eurozone, 66.5% in Germany, and 111.1% in France," he added.

The president touched upon the inflation rate separately. "I am looking at 3.5% [in Russia] in March, 7.4% in Germany, 6.9% in the eurozone overall, 5.7% in France, 5% in Germany, [and] in Brazil, it is higher than our rate," Putin said in summarizing the latest macroeconomic indicators.

According to the most recent updated prediction for Russia's socioeconomic development, GDP growth in Russia is predicted to be 1.2% in 2023, and 2% in 2024. Inflation in the country is expected to be 5.3% in 2023. The Ministry of Economic Development anticipates a 5.4% increase in people’s real wages.

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