Analysts urge developing international services

Russia needs to take extra measures aimed at developing export services and enhancing their competitiveness on foreign markets, analysts of the center for macroeconomic research of BDO Unicon believe. Russia's accession to the WTO requires providing non-residents with access to the internal market of banking and insurance services. According to analysts, this may lead to a rise in services imports. International services account for a considerable share in the balance of payments of industrialized countries, unlike Russia. In the first half of 2003, the volume of Russia's international services amounted to $19bn, up 13.4 percent against the same period of 2002.