Page 80 - RusRPTMar23

could be improved.
Russia’s real disposable income rose by 0.9% on the year in October– December 2022, the Federal State Statistics Service said on February 8. In 2022, the indicator decreased by 1%. The service also revised the 2021 real disposable income to increase the rise to 3.2% from 3%. The revision caused recalculations for 2022. The updated estimate showed a 1.6% contraction of the real disposable income in January–March 2022 instead of the previous estimate of 1.2%, while the April–June indicator was upgraded to a 0.6% fall from 0.8% and for July–September to a 3.1% decrease from 3.4%. The real disposable income excludes taxes and other mandatory payments and its performance is adjusted for inflation.
Russia’s wage arrears increased by 24.3% in January to 798.9mn rubles as of February 1, the Federal State Statistics Service said on Wednesday. The wage arrears accumulated in 2023 amounted to 37.3mn rubles, the arrears that emerged in 2022 amounted to 458.8mn rubles, and the arrears accumulated in 2021 and earlier to 302.8mn rubles. The education sector accounted for 59.4% of the debt, the processing industry for 18.8%, construction for 4.4%, water dispatching and waste recycling for 4.4%, the agriculture and timber industries for 3.8%, mining for 3.8%, transport for 2.9%, real estate management for 1.2%, and electric power and gas provision for 1%.
Russian disposable incomes are down 6.5% in 2022 from 2013. Like the 1913 level was the benchmark for the Soviets, 2013 would be a target for years to come.
4.5.3 Retail sector dynamics
Russia’s retail sales decreased by 10.5% on the year in comparable prices to RUB4.2 trillion in December after a fall of 7.9% in November, the Federal State Statistics Service said on February 8.
Retail turnover was down 9.7% year-on-year as of October. Though imports of refrigerators, washing machines, and other consumer goods that contain dual-use semiconductors have posted strong growth, consumer demand for repair services for appliances were up 74% year-on-year for large appliances as of October. The housing market began to collapse once mobilization was announced — demand for new-builds fell 70% between September and October alone.
NielsenIQ’s survey of consumer demand showed that despite rising prices from inflation, real demand for consumer goods in 2022 fell by
3.4%, a record D-,'(!')#?/!(1/!67CB867C=!'1-?AL!$#0!'1-++)#E!?/#(/,!
?-#'(,G?()-#!hit a 20-year low down 64% from 2021 levels. Demand for tech gifts — smartphones, earphones, and other accessories — is down 10−30%
80 RUSSIA Country Report March 2023 www.intellinews.com