Rosstat has registered a drop in the income of Russians

According to the research made by Rosstat, the disposable income of Russians fell by 0.2% in January-March compared to the same period in 2019. Analysts took into account all revenues, including mandatory payments, as well as adjusting for inflation.

The last time the rate dropped by 1.6% was in the first quarter of 2019. Later, incomes increased steadily: in the second quarter by 1%, in the third — by 2.9%, in the fourth — by 1.8%. Over the last year, citizens’ incomes grew by 0.8%. It should be noted that the department has changed the principle of calculating the indicator. Previously, the results were published monthly, now — quarterly.

Average income per person for the first quarter amounted to 31,245.9 rubles, which is 3.3% more than in the same period last year, but 24% less than in the last quarter. Meanwhile, prices increased by 2.4% compared to the first quarter of last year, prices for food groups of goods increased by 2%. Incomes of citizens for the study period were distributed by 88.1% to current consumption, another 15.8% — to mandatory payments. Citizens began to save by 6.5% less, which turned out to be the maximum decrease since 2013.

Lilia Ovcharova, head of the Institute for Social Policy of the NRU Higher School of Economics, is sure that the imposition of restrictions by the authorities due to the spread of the coronavirus has not yet affected citizens’ incomes. According to the expert, the fall in the disposable income is explained by the fall in the ruble exchange rate against the collapse in oil prices. Oleg Shibanov, professor at the Russian School of Economics, is sure that the drop in the rate on bank deposits has greateк impact on income. He said that the drop in income occured not due to a decrease in wages or social benefits.

Ovcharova also predicts a 5% decline in real incomes of citizens in the second quarter due to non-working days and an unemployment rate surge. Research Institute VEB.RF has suggested that the decline will be 17.5% for the quarter and 6.5% in annual terms.