Inside the Russian Economy
Our weekly in-depth analysis of the Russian economy from Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr, who have experience at the Russian Central Bank and financial sector more broadly. Filled with reliable data, insightful analysis and commentary from sources inside Russia. From May 1, 2025, it went behind a paywall.

Russia’s ballooning budget deficit PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr and brought to you by The Bell. Our top story is on data revealing the current state of Russia’s finances, including a steadily growing budget deficit. We also assess the upcoming St.

Bonuses reduced for Russian military recruits PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr and brought to you by The Bell. Our top story looks at reductions to the bonuses paid to military recruits, a break with the trend of the last two years. We also analyze

Russia teeters on brink of recession PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexander Kolyandr and Alexandra Prokopenko and brought to you by The Bell. This week our top story is a look at data suggesting Russia is very close to entering a recession. We also analyze Russia’s embrace of

War is twisting Russia’s demographics PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexander Kolyandr and Alexandra Prokopenko and brought to you by The Bell. This week our top story is an analysis of Russian wartime budget and demographic paradoxes. We also look at why new Western sanctions are less and

Spending, spending, spending PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr and brought to you by The Bell. This week, our top story is about why Russian spending levels remain high even as the economic slowdown gathers pace. We also look at why recent

Trump’s trade war with China is a gift for the Kremlin PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr and brought to you by The Bell. This week, our top story is a look at how the warming relationship between Moscow and Beijing amid the war in Ukraine and China-U.S. tensions.

Russian business frets over possibility of sanctions relief PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr and brought to you by The Bell. This week we have a deep dive piece on how opinion in Russia is split over the desirability of sanctions relief—perhaps surprisingly, there are many

Russia mulls fiscal belt-tightening PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr and brought to you by The Bell. This week, our top story is a look at a suggestion by Finance Minister Anton Siluanov that there could be a change to fiscal rules that

Russia’s economy is cooling down PRO Members Public
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Could a global trade war destabilize Russia’s finances? PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy — written by Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr and brought to you by The Bell. This week we look at what the effect of a prolonged trade war and lower oil prices would be on the Russian economy. We also examine



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The Bell was founded in 2017 by journalists Elizaveta Osetinskaya, Irina Malkova and Peter Mironenko as a news outlet independent from the Russian authorities, after its founders have been sacked as top editors at the largest Russian news website RBC because of pressure from the Kremlin.
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