Russia's Uncertain Economic Future

Book excerpt: The contributors to this volume analyze the present state of the Russian economy and its future prospects - which now seem brighter than at any previous time in the country's history. The Russian economy is now showing positive GDP growth and a positive balance of payments, portending a trend of sustained growth. The record of the Putin presidency with respect to the establishment of market-friendly legal and administrative environments is substantially positive. On the other side of the ledger, the contributors identify the persistence of monopolies in energy, transportation, and agriculture; distortions resulting from corruption, infrastructural inadequacies, and the maldistribution of political power and decision-making authority; demographic decline and the erosion of human capital as manifested in the health, education, and welfare of the population. Russia's successful development as a democratic society with a market economy is of great importance to its neighbors and to the global economy, and specifically to the United States, which is why the U.S. Congress commissioned these studies by expert analysts. This edition includes a comprehensive subject index, making the volume user-friendly.