Section 01 — Economy
Growth Stalls Everywhere the War Effort Isn't
After two years of overheated wartime growth, Rosstat's own numbers show the economy braking hard in 2025. What growth remains is concentrated almost entirely in defense-linked manufacturing, while oil and gas revenue — the traditional backbone of the budget — is falling sharply.
Fresh — GDP: Rosstat Feb 2026 · Inflation: Rosstat Jun 2026 · Key Rate: CBR Jul 2026
Source: Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) · Bank of Russia · Ministry of Finance
GDP Growth 2025
+1.0%
Rosstat's confirmed final estimate for 2025 — a sharp deceleration after growth of 4.9% in 2024 and 4.1% in 2023 (both revised upward by Rosstat itself). The Bank of Russia's own economists describe this as effective stagnation once the earlier high base is accounted for.
↓ Sharp deceleration from 4.9% in 2024 · Rosstat Feb 2026
Rosstat's sector breakdown shows the 2025 growth is concentrated almost entirely in defense-linked manufacturing: "other vehicles and equipment" grew 32%, finished metal products 18%, and computers/electronics 11.7%. Mining, energy, utilities, and both retail and wholesale trade all contracted. The Central Bank's forecast for 2026 growth is a narrow 0.5–1.5% band.Rosstat GDP by output, Feb 2026 · The Bell economic analysis, Feb 2026 · Bank of Russia Summary of Key Rate Discussion, Mar 2026
Inflation Jun 2026
6.0%
Annual CPI rose to 6.02% in June 2026 from 5.31% in May (Rosstat) — the highest reading since January and well above the Bank of Russia's 4% target. Services inflation is running hottest at 10.6%, driven partly by fuel shortages after Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries.
▲ Reaccelerating from a May low · Rosstat Jul 2026
Bank of Russia Key Rate
14.0%
Cut in July 2026, continuing a gradual easing cycle from the record 21% high held through much of 2025. The Bank of Russia says monetary conditions remain "moderately tight" and has warned that a more accommodative fiscal policy may require holding rates higher for longer.
▼ Easing from a 21% wartime peak · CBR Jul 2026
Unemployment Dec 2025
2.1%
A record low, driven substantially by military recruitment and defense-industry hiring pulling workers out of the civilian labour pool rather than by broad-based economic strength. The Bank of Russia continues to describe the labour market as "overheated."
↔ Record low, but wartime-driven · Rosstat / CBR Dec 2025
Large-scale military recruitment, generous signing bonuses for army volunteers, and heavy hiring by defense manufacturers have pulled workers out of the civilian economy, alongside a shrinking working-age population. The Bank of Russia has repeatedly cited this labour shortage — not consumer demand — as one of its central concerns in setting policy, since it pushes up wages faster than productivity and feeds inflation.Bank of Russia Summary of Key Rate Discussion, 2026 · Rosstat labour force statistics
Oil & Gas Revenue, Jan–Feb 2026
-47%
Oil and gas revenue fell 47% year-on-year to 826 billion rubles in the first two months of 2026, below the government's own baseline forecast, as global oil prices softened. Under Russia's fiscal rule, National Wealth Fund money is used automatically to cover the shortfall.
▼ Falling oil prices hit the budget's core revenue · Finance Ministry Mar 2026
Two-Track Economy
+32% / -3%
Defense-linked "other vehicles and equipment" manufacturing grew 32% in 2025 while broader industrial production fell roughly 3% year-on-year in early 2026 (Rosstat). Growth and contraction are now running side by side within the same economy, split almost entirely along military versus civilian lines.
↔ Military manufacturing vs. a shrinking civilian base · Rosstat 2025–26
Section 02 — Fiscal Health
Low Debt, Fast-Vanishing Reserves
Russia's federal debt load is still low by international standards. But the National Wealth Fund — the reserve built specifically to cushion oil-price and wartime shocks — has lost more than half its liquid value since 2022, and defense and security spending now consumes nearly two-fifths of the federal budget.
Fresh — NWF: Finance Ministry Jul 2026 · Debt: Finance Ministry 2026 · Budget: Federal Law, Nov 2025
Source: Russian Ministry of Finance · Federal Treasury of Russia · minfin.gov.ru
★ Context: Russia's federal debt-to-GDP ratio of roughly 18.5% remains low by international standards — far below the USA, UK or Japan. But unlike those economies, Russia has been shut out of Western capital markets since 2022 and can only borrow domestically, at rates near the 14% key rate, while its rainy-day fund is running down fast.
🏦 Federal Public Finances — 2026 Budget
Federal Government Debt-to-GDP
Approximately 18.5% of GDP, projected to reach ~20% by 2028 as annual deficits are financed almost entirely through new borrowing rather than reserves. Debt-servicing costs are projected to nearly double as a share of the federal budget compared with 2021.
~18.5%
of GDP · MinFin
of GDP · MinFin
2026 Federal Budget Deficit (planned)
3.786 trillion rubles, or 1.6% of GDP, per the federal budget law signed in November 2025. The January–February 2026 deficit already reached 3.449 trillion rubles (1.5% of GDP) — federal revenue fell 10.8% year-on-year as oil and gas receipts collapsed.
1.6% GDP
planned target
planned target
National Wealth Fund — Liquid Assets
3.61 trillion rubles ($46.4 billion) as of July 1, 2026 — down from a pre-invasion peak of roughly $113.5 billion in early 2022. This is the portion of Russia's sovereign wealth fund that can actually be spent to cover budget shortfalls; the rest is tied up in illiquid domestic holdings.
$46.4B
down ~59% since 2022
down ~59% since 2022
Defense & Security Spending
Around 38% of total federal budget expenditure in 2026 — roughly 7% of GDP — remains the single largest budget category for a fourth consecutive year, even as the government has signalled the first symbolic reduction in national defense line-items since the invasion began.
~38%
of federal budget
of federal budget
Cut off from Western capital markets since 2022 and with roughly $300 billion in central bank reserves frozen abroad, Russia's only real fiscal buffers are the National Wealth Fund and domestic borrowing. Economists at RANEPA and the Gaidar Institute warned in 2025 that the fund's liquid portion could be exhausted within about a year if oil prices stayed low — a warning that has proven largely accurate as the liquid balance has kept shrinking through 2026. Once it is gone, the government's remaining options are higher taxes (VAT was raised from 20% to 22% for 2026), spending cuts outside defense, or accepting a larger, more expensive deficit.The Moscow Times, Jun 2025 & Oct 2025 · Bank of Finland Bulletin, Oct 2025 · Free Russia Foundation Think Tank, Dec 2025
Section 04 — Governance
Among the World's Lowest-Ranked Democracies
By the measures independent international bodies use everywhere else on this site — perceived corruption, credit access, and election observation — Russia scores near the bottom globally. This is reported factually and without editorial judgment, using the same yardsticks applied to every other country on MyGovScorecard.
Fresh — CPI: Feb 2026 · Presidential Election: Mar 2024 (most recent) · Credit Rating status: ongoing since 2022
Source: Transparency International · OSCE/ODIHR · S&P Global · Moody's · Fitch Ratings
EDITORIAL NOTE: Governance data is presented non-partisan and factually. Rankings and events are drawn from internationally recognised independent bodies, not from this site's own judgment.
157
of 182
CPI 2025
Score: 22
CPI 2025
Score: 22
⚠ Corruption Perceptions Index 2025 — Rank 157, Score 22
Transparency International's lowest score on record for Russia, unchanged from 2024. This ties Russia with Chad, Zimbabwe and Honduras, and places it below Iran (153rd), Iraq (136th) and Uzbekistan (124th). Only Tajikistan and Turkmenistan rank lower among former Soviet states.
▼ Down 28 places since a 2020 peak · TI Feb 2026
Transparency International CPI 2025 · transparency.org/en/cpi/2025
Unrated
Since
2022
2022
⚠ Sovereign Credit Rating — Withdrawn by All Three Major Agencies
S&P, Moody's and Fitch each withdrew their Russia sovereign ratings in March–April 2022 to comply with EU sanctions banning ratings on Russian entities, after all three had already cut Russia to "junk" territory. Russia has had no rating from a major global agency since — a first in the post-Soviet era.
↔ Unrated globally since 2022 · S&P / Moody's / Fitch
S&P Global Ratings press release, Mar 2022 · Fitch Ratings, Mar 2022
2024
Presidential
Election
Election
2024 Presidential Election — Putin Re-Elected, No OSCE Observers
Vladimir Putin was declared the winner with an officially reported 87% of the vote on 17 March 2024. Russia did not invite OSCE/ODIHR observers, the second consecutive election without them; opposition leader Alexei Navalny died in prison weeks before the vote, and OSCE/ODIHR noted that candidates expressing anti-war views were disqualified from standing.
↔ Second consecutive unobserved election · OSCE/ODIHR 2024
OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Jan & Mar 2024 statements
ODIHR's leadership called Russia's decision not to invite observers "deeply regrettable" and noted it ran contrary to Russia's own OSCE commitments. Only three Kremlin-approved candidates were permitted to stand; any candidate expressing anti-war views was disqualified before the vote. Russia also held voting in occupied Ukrainian territories (Crimea, Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia), which the European Parliament and other bodies do not recognise as valid.OSCE/ODIHR statements, Jan & Mar 2024 · European Parliament briefing, Mar 2024
Section 05 — Russia in the World
Resource and Military Power, Institutional Isolation
Russia remains a dominant force in global food and energy supply and holds the world's largest nuclear arsenal alongside the United States. Set against that: a media environment among the most restricted on earth, a public sector perceived as one of the most corrupt, and an economy still cut off from large parts of the global financial system.
Fresh — RSF: May 2025 · SIPRI: Jun 2026 · Agriculture Ministry: Jan 2026
Source: Reporters Without Borders · SIPRI · Russian Ministry of Agriculture · Transparency International
EDITORIAL NOTE: Wins and gaps shown equally. All from internationally recognised independent bodies or official government sources. No political judgment.
🏆 Where Russia Leads
#1
Global
Wheat
Exporter
Wheat
Exporter
World's Largest Wheat Exporter — 41 Million Tonnes in 2025
Russia's Agriculture Ministry confirmed Russia retained its position as the world's top wheat exporter in 2025, with 78% of shipments going to Africa and the Middle East. The FAO projects Russia will continue supplying roughly a fifth of all globally traded wheat through 2026.
↔ Consistent #1 ranking · Russian Agriculture Ministry Jan 2026
Russian Ministry of Agriculture, World Grain and Pulses Forum, Jan 2026 · FAO wheat export forecasts 2025-26
2.1%
Record-Low
Unemployment
Unemployment
Record-Low Unemployment — Among the Tightest Labour Markets Globally
At 2.1% (Dec 2025), Russia's unemployment rate is among the lowest of any major economy, reflecting a genuinely tight labour market — though driven substantially by military recruitment and defense-industry hiring rather than broad-based civilian job growth.
↔ Record low sustained since 2024 · Rosstat / CBR Dec 2025
Rosstat labour force survey · Bank of Russia Summary of Key Rate Discussion 2026
#1
Nuclear
Warheads
(with USA)
Warheads
(with USA)
World's Largest Nuclear Arsenal, Alongside the United States
Russia and the United States together hold roughly 83% of the world's approximately 9,745 stockpiled nuclear warheads as of January 2026 (SIPRI). Both countries continue extensive modernization programmes; the US-Russia New START treaty limiting deployed arsenals expired in February 2026 without a replacement in force.
↔ Largest global stockpile, alongside the USA · SIPRI Jun 2026
SIPRI Yearbook 2026 · SIPRI press release, Jun 2026
⚠ Where Russia Faces Hard Questions
162
of 180
Press
Freedom 2025
Press
Freedom 2025
⚠ Press Freedom Index 2025 — Rank 162 of 180
Reporters Without Borders places Russia among the roughly 42 countries classified in the Index's most severe "very serious" category for press freedom, alongside some of the most restrictive media environments in the world. Independent Russian media has been largely forced abroad, blocked, or labelled "undesirable" since 2022.
↔ In the Index's worst tier · RSF 2025
Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index 2025 · rsf.org
157
of 182
CPI 2025
Score: 22
CPI 2025
Score: 22
⚠ Corruption Perceptions Index — Rank 157, Tied With Chad and Zimbabwe
Transparency International's 2025 score of 22/100 is Russia's lowest on record, and represents a 28-place fall from its 2020 peak ranking. Transparency International cites government opacity, pressure on independent institutions, and weak oversight as systemic drivers.
▼ Worst-ever recorded score · TI Feb 2026
Transparency International CPI 2025
$300B
Reserves
Frozen
Frozen
⚠ International Sanctions — Roughly $300 Billion in Reserves Frozen
Following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the US, EU, UK and allied governments froze an estimated $300 billion of Russian central bank reserves held abroad and excluded major Russian banks from the SWIFT international payments network. Russia's National Wealth Fund liquid reserves have fallen by more than half since, from a 2022 peak near $113.5 billion to $46.4 billion by July 2026.
↔ Ongoing since 2022, no resolution in force · G7/EU/UK sanctions actions
European Council sanctions overview · US Treasury OFAC · Russian Ministry of Finance, Jul 2026
Beyond the frozen reserves and SWIFT exclusion, hundreds of Western companies exited the Russian market after 2022, and Russia lost most of its European energy customers, redirecting oil and gas exports toward China and India at discounted prices. The economy has proven more resilient than many initial 2022 forecasts expected, but the combination of financial isolation, a shrinking sovereign wealth cushion, and a shrinking working-age population represents a structural, multi-year drag rather than a short-term shock.Statistics of the World, Russia Economy 2026 overview · Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT) weekly review
🔒
Data Integrity Promise
Every number on RussiaScorecard traces to an official Russian government publication (Rosstat, Bank of Russia, Ministry of Finance), an internationally recognised body (IMF, World Bank, UNDP, Transparency International, RSF, SIPRI), or a directly cited sanctions/regulatory action. We never estimate. Where data is unavailable, unreliable, or disputed, we say so. No political party funds or influences this site. Refreshed every 1st and 15th of every month.