Russia's Economy In Recession As Putin's Troops Retreat

Russia's GDP fell 4% on-year in the third quarter of 2022 — its second straight quarterly decline. That means the country has fallen into a technical recession, Huileng Tan reported for Insider.

Photo Insert: Russia's GDP fell by 4% in the third quarter of the year from a year ago.

Top Russian central banker Elvira Nabiullina acknowledged the situation could worsen, as Interfax news service reported. Eight months after it attacked Ukraine, Russia's economy has finally fallen into a recession, according to official data from Moscow released on Wednesday.

Its GDP fell by 4% in the third quarter of the year from a year ago, according to Rosstat, Russia's statistics agency.

This followed a 4.1% year-on-year decline in its second-quarter GDP — meaning the country has fallen into a technical recession after two straight quarterly contractions.

While the textbook definition isn't necessarily indicative of a serious downturn — Russia's third-quarter GDP slide was milder than the 7% decline it had expected earlier —Nabiullina said. She added that the country needs to look at the economic situation "very soberly with open eyes" and be prepared for any development.

"Yes, the situation can worsen, we understand this," Nabiullina told Russian lawmakers, according to Interfax, adding it was necessary to restructure the economy.

Nabiullina's assessment of the economy followed months of intensifying sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. Global companies have exited Russia en masse, while much of its currency and gold reserves have been frozen since the start of the war on February 24.

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