Russian Premier Notes Positive Economic Tendencies in 2000Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov on Thursday hailed positive trend of the national economy in 2000, predicting a 7 percent growth of the gross domestic product for the year."The economic situation in the country remains favorable. The GDP growth will amount to some 7 percent this year, while the industrial production will increase about 9.5 percent," Kasyanov said at a news conference in the government house, summing up the country's social and economic results this year. While agriculture will grow 3 percent over a year earlier, the largest growth will be posted by the light industry, machine building and health care. Kasyanov attributed the growth to rising domestic demand and the demand for investments, which rose 17 to 19 percent from the previous year. Kasyanov emphasized that political stability contributed to Russia's economic growth. The stability characterized by cooperation between all branches of power "creates conditions for further progress in the social-economic sphere," he said. Russia's trade surplus this year is expected to reach 60 billion dollars, a record high in the past decade, with exports totaling 102 billion dollars and imports some 42 billion. Inflation is likely to be around 20.5 percent, he said, adding that the government will make all efforts to ease the impact of seasonal price hikes in January and February. The premier forecast a 4 percent economic growth for the next year. |
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