Up to 40% of Light Industry Production in Russia Manufactured in Shadow Economy Sphere

Up to 40% of light industry production in Russia is manufactured in the shadow economy sphere, said Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov at a government session.

This economic sector has in recent years shown negative results, he said. Kasyanov recalled, that in the course of two years after the 1998 crisis light industry showed production growth due to the import replacement effect and the rouble's devaluation. Later, however, the industry failed to preserve the positive trends. The Prime Minister accounts for this by Russia's dependence on imported raw materials. "Over the last year the profitability in the industry has fallen, while the losses have increased. Now we need to consider measures to reverse this trend," he said. At present the industry employs about 800,000 workers, most of whom are women, according to Kasyanov. Moreover, in several regions of Russia, the life standard is directly connected with the work in the sphere of the light industry, he pointed out.