economy
Farewell to Superprofits: Corporations in Almost All Russian Industries Are Losing Profitability or Incurring Losses
The financial indicators of large businesses today speak more frankly about the state of the Russian economy than official macroeconomic statistics, where on paper everything is not so bad. Thus, according to the Ministry of Economic Development, if in January-March 2026 GDP was 0.2% less than in the same period last year, then in January-April it was already 0.2% more. But, as "Vedomosti" recently calculated, out of the 28 largest companies in the country, the situation worsened for 21 over the past year - that is exactly three quarters. Small and medium-sized businesses have not fared any better: an increase in the tax burden resulted in a decrease in tax revenues from SMEs by 22.2% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to last year, the Ministry of Finance admitted.
TL;DR
- Financial indicators of large businesses are more telling about the Russian economy than official statistics.
- 21 out of 28 of Russia's largest companies saw their financial situation worsen over the past year.
- GDP figures showed a slight increase in January-April 2026 after a decrease in January-March 2026.
- Tax revenues from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) dropped by 22.2% in Q1 2026 compared to the previous year due to higher tax loads.