“The Russian economy contracted by 3.1% last year (less than the projected decline of 3.6%), but proved to be more resilient compared to many other emerging economies,” the authors of the report noted.

According to experts, this state of affairs in the Russian economy is partly due to the relatively small service sector, a large share of the protected public sector and COVID-19-related restrictions that have excluded most of the industrial sector.

The fund notes that Russia "has entered the crisis caused by COVID-19 with low economic growth, but strong political mechanisms and significant reserves."

According to IMF forecasts, the Russian economy will grow by 3% this year, by 3.9% next year, and by 2.1% in 2023.

Earlier, the World Bank predicted the growth of Russia's GDP in 2021 by 2.6%.