The Kremlin has admitted Russia will have at least an 8% economic contraction this year, four times worse than it predicted at the beginning of the year. The rising ruble, tied to the price of oil threatens to wreck Russia’s domestic industry. The results are disastrous. The Wall Street Journal reports:
Russian unemployment has reached its highest level this decade as thrift replaces a culture of consumer spending, official data released Friday showed. The number of unemployed in Russia rose to 7.7 million in April, or 10.2% of the total labor force of 75.2 million, data from the Federal Statistics Service, or Rosstat, showed. Around 3 million workers have lost their jobs since late summer. Russia’s economy has been dragged down by lower oil prices and decreased access to short-term capital.
{Click the link to read the details, showing that the Russian economy is on the cusp of another major downturn}