2023-04-23 02:50:16
Are Russian billionaires insensitive to Western sanctions? According to the Russian edition of Forbes magazine, the total wealth of the richest people in Russia has increased by $152 billion, from $353 billion in 2022 to $505 billion this year. According to this article, relayed by the press agency Reutersthe number of billionaires would have even increased in a year, from 88 to 110. And the list could have been longer if five of them had not renounced Russian citizenship because of the war.
This information comes as many parts of the Russian economy have been targeted by Western sanctions since the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. The Russian economy has thus shrunk by 2.1% in 2022. But Reuters explains these figures by the rise in the price of raw materials in Russia. Exports have continued for a year.
The price of oil from the Urals, a lifeblood of the Russian economy, for example, averaged $76.09 a barrel in 2022, compared to $69 in 2021. Fertilizer prices were also high in the year. last. However, Moscow was able to continue selling oil, metals and other natural resources on world markets, particularly to China, India and the Middle East. The three richest people in Russia are a fertilizer producer, a businessman who made his fortune in minerals and a billionaire in the steel industry.
A fortune lower than before the war
The gains of these super rich are nevertheless to be put into perspective. “Last year’s rating results were influenced by doomsday predictions about the Russian economy,” says Forbes Russia, adding that the overall wealth of billionaires remains lower than before the war in Ukraine ($606 billion). ).
The IMF this month raised its forecast for Russian growth to 0.7% in 2023 from 0.3% previously, but lowered its forecast for 2024 to 1.3% from 2.1%, saying it s expected that labor shortages and the exodus of Western companies would hurt the country’s economy.
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