Russia's gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated to have dropped by 1.9% during the opening quarter of 2023 in comparison to the corresponding trimester the year earlier, Rosstat revealed in its preliminary projections published on Wednesday.
"The index of the physical volume of gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2023 relative to the corresponding period of 2022 amounted to 98.1%," Rosstat disclosed.
Rosstat's preliminary figures turned out to be "better" than earlier projections by the Bank of Russia and Ministry of Economic Development, which predicted a 2.3% and 2.1% fall in the country's first-quarter GDP respectively. The Russian central bank previously said that it expects the nation's economic growth to accelerate in the second quarter this year.