{"id":258755,"date":"2026-01-30T04:28:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T04:28:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/258755\/"},"modified":"2026-01-30T04:28:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T04:28:15","slug":"russian-business-optimism-plunges-amid-tax-hike-and-rising-costs-survey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/258755\/","title":{"rendered":"Russian Business Optimism Plunges Amid Tax Hike and Rising Costs \u2013 Survey"},"content":{"rendered":"

The share of Russian companies that view the domestic economy positively fell to just 4% in January, a sharp drop from 14% in December, a survey by the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) cited<\/a> by Forbes has said.<\/p>\n

The survey of top executives in large companies found that one in three firms reported falling demand (31%), while roughly one in four (26%) said their counterparties were increasingly failing to meet obligations.<\/p>\n

Two-thirds of companies said procurement costs were rising, up from half in December, and one in four said they planned to raise prices to offset higher expenses.<\/p>\n

The mood among companies has turned \u201cpessimistic,\u201d said Alexander Kalinin, president of Opora Russia, an organization representing small and medium-sized enterprises.<\/p>\n

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He noted that December\u2019s optimism had been buoyed by budget contract settlements, but January\u2019s business sentiment was hit by a tax reform that raised VAT to 22% and subjected more small businesses to the tax.<\/p>\n

\u201cIndicators have declined across nearly all categories, and the share of firms forced to raise prices has grown,\u201d Kalinin said.<\/p>\n

He added that worsening communication with authorities is also weighing on sentiment.<\/p>\n

An Opora Russia survey conducted in late December suggested that up to one-third of small and medium-sized companies could close this year due to higher taxes.<\/p>\n

A separate survey by the Institute of National Economic Forecasting of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IPN RAN) conducted in November-December showed that 71% of companies complained<\/a> of insufficient demand, the highest level since the survey began in 1999.<\/p>\n

The proportion of firms reporting sanctions-related damage also rose to 71.2% in 2025, up from 65.2% in 2024 and 60.6% in 2023.<\/p>\n

Read this story in Russian at The Moscow Times’ Russian service.<\/a><\/p>\n

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