Black gold helps Putin dodge worst of economic pain

Companies reported the first broad increases in output and in their outlooks in June, S&P Global reported Tuesday.

Producers adapting

“Russia is tracking a far milder recession than had been feared when the invasion began,” JPMorgan economists wrote this week, cutting their expected contraction to 3.5 per cent this year from the 7 per cent they expected in March.

Industrial production was up 1.7 per cent in May from the previous month, according to seasonally adjusted data from the Development Centre at Moscow’s Higher School of Economics. “The break in the contraction in May could be a sign that producers have initially adapted to the shock of anti-Russian sanctions,” the centre said.

A big driver has been a rebound in oil production, which dropped after the invasion but was up 7 per cent in June from those lows thanks to domestic demand and a shift to export buyers in Asia.

Gas output, another key economic engine, was down, but prices have spiked, fuelling revenue gains.

“We are not at the level of stress that we had assumed for 2022,” Rosbank economist Evgeny Koshelev said. “We should expect better trends because both budget and monetary policies are overall stimulative.”

Restrained recession?

Retail sales are down about 10 per cent, but the drop appears to have stabilised in a sector that accounts for about half the economy. Consumer confidence has picked up and unemployment remains at record lows. Data from cash registers show purchases in late June picked up to pre-war levels, Economy Minister Maxim Reshetnikov told a government meeting on Tuesday. “But it’s early to talk about stabilisation,” he said.

Imports, which plunged 40 per cent in April, have also showed signs of steadying.

The government has also stepped up spending on welfare programs and military procurement, giving an added economic boost. The central bank has reversed all the rate hikes imposed since the invasion.

“Activity indicators suggest that there is significant upside” to our 7 per cent decline forecast for this year, Goldman economist Clemens Grafe said in a research note.

“We are not at the level of stress that we had assumed for 2022.”

Rosbank economist Evgeny Koshelev

Still, forecasters warn of substantial uncertainty about the outlook. Quicker-than-expected imposition of limits on Russian energy in Europe could hit revenue in the second half, as could a drop in demand if fears of a recession prove justified.

Signs of tightening inventories in Russia in recent months may mean sanctions pain will deepen as supplies run out. Rouble strength could lead exporters to cut production as they’re priced out of markets.

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“There are grounds for optimism,” said Natalia Lavrova, chief economist at BCS Financial Group in Moscow. “The risks are somewhat lower for 2022, but they also have moved to 2023 because of the oil embargo,” she said, referring to EU plans to restrict imports next year.

Bloomberg

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