The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has commented for the first time on the sharp decline in investments in the Russian economy, which began last year and turned into the strongest decline since 2009 this year — a decrease of 14.3% in the first quarter.
During a meeting with government members dedicated to investments, Putin stated that in Russia “there is no investment pause”.
“To a certain extent, we could talk about an investment restraint, which is understandable, as it is determined by aspects related to macroeconomics and measures adopted by economic and financial authorities. This is related to both the course of the national currency and the key interest rate,” the Russian leader stated.
He added that the situation is “generally under control”, and the measures taken are “producing the desired results”.
“Inflation is falling. What is it now? Just over 5%?”, Putin asked.
According to official Rosstat data, in 2025 the volume of investments fell for the first time since the beginning of the war — by 2.3%. At the beginning of this year, the pace of decline accelerated more than six times.
The production of investment goods has decreased by 2.7%, and the current volume of production is 16% lower than in 2024, according to calculations by the Center for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-Term Forecasting, an institute close to the Russian government.
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