Half of Russians think worst is yet to come for economy, poll finds

Half of Russians think worst is yet to come for economy, poll finds
While the overall impression among Russians of the economy was a negative one, 45% said that they are generally satisfied with the life they lead. / Petar Milošević
By Henry Kirby in London March 15, 2016

More than half of Russians believe that the worst is yet to come for the country’s economy, while a quarter believe they are currently experiencing the peak of the crisis, a poll by Moscow-based VTsIOM has found.

The poll, conducted on February 20-21, asked respondents to assess the situation of the country on a number of different criteria. As the bneChart below shows, when asked if the ongoing economic crisis in Russia is likely to end anytime soon, 52% said they believe the worst is yet to come – roughly the same percentage that has for the past four months.

While the majority offered up a grim prognosis when asked about Russia’s economy, 70% had a positive outlook when asked about the country’s overall situation.

The poll findings point to a population that is increasingly struggling to look ahead with any real conviction. 36% said that they would like to plan ahead, but find it practically impossible at the moment.

Another VTsIOM poll, conducted a week later on February 27-28, asked respondents to rate their lives on a number of criteria of wellbeing, taking average positive and negative answers to produce indices for each measure, with a minimum possible score of -100 and a maximum of 100.

 

As the interactive bneChart above shows, the index of Russia’s economic situation has actually seen a slight uptick since the turn of the year, growing from 17 to 24 between January and February, suggesting that while the economic outlook of most Russians remains negative, the day-to-day reality is that current economic constraints are manageable.

This is also reflected in the overall life satisfaction index, which has seen a sharp spike in 2016, following a gradual decline from the first half of 2014.

 

 

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