Social Development Indicators: Growth in Wages and Optimism

Elena Avraamova – Head of Social Development Department, Institute of Social Analysis and Forecasting, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, Doctor of Economic Sciences, Professor. Е-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Victor Lyashok – Senior Research fellow of the Labor Market and Pension System Research Department, Institute for Social Analysis and Forecasting, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Tatiana Maleva – Director of Institute for Social Analysis and Forecasting, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, Candidate of Economic Sciences, Doctor of Business Administration. Е-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Aleksandra Polyakova – Leading Research fellow of the Living Standard and Social Safety Net Research Department, Institute for Social Analysis and Forecasting, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, Doctor of Economic Sciences. E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

According to the updated estimate, in 2017 the GDP physical volume index amounted to 101.5% while capital investments increased 4.4% on the previous year. The retail segment of the financial industry saw a decrease in lending-related risks. Economic agents’ inflationary expectations demonstrated generally positive dynamics:  most enterprises’ financial plans are based on the rate of inflation of maximum 4%.

With the passage of time, the pattern of the retail trade turnover does not virtually change. The headline inflation keeps falling: in March 2018 it amounted to 2.4%; services appreciated the most by 3.9% compared to March 2017.

In 2017, reduction of the number of workforce was mainly caused by a decrease in the number of young people at the age of 15–25 years old. The number of the employed in the informal sector decreased because the number of the self-employed and those engaged in the agriculture increased.

In January 2018, drivers of acceleration of growth in wages and salaries were mainly state-financed industries and production of petrochemicals. In February, growth in households’ real disposable cash incomes, real accrued wages and the real size of granted pensions amounted to 4.4%, 9.7% and 1.1%, respectively.

In March 2018, most people’s views of the economic situation in the country and its development prospects changed much for the better. However, the nature of peoples’ adaptive behavior did not change.

Key words: households’ cash incomes, wages and salaries, labor market, prices and social well-being, expected inflation.