Almost a quarter of Russians are forced to save on food
More than a third of Russians (37%) are forced to save on basic needs, showed the survey conducted by the Russian bank Otkritie. According to the study, 23% of Russian citizens are forced to save on food, 40% - on clothes and footwear.
More than half - 55% - have cut spending on gadgets, 62% - on travel, 71% - entertainment.
Seven percent of respondents do not deny themselves anything, while in some regions the proportion of those "tightening their belts" is approaching half of the population.
Thus, in the Central Federal District 47% of Russians are have to save on basic needs, in Siberia - 43%. The lowest share was recorded in the Urals and North Caucasus (30%).
The COVID pandemic forced one in five Russians to save on basic necessities. The pandemic has affected Russia's GDP, hit the ruble exchange rate, and pushed the standard of living to 10 years low.
33% of the residents of the North Caucasus, 29% of the residents of the Urals have been forced to limit their expenses because of the crisis. To a lesser degree, the pandemic affected those living in the Central Federal District (13%) and the Far East (14%).
65% of respondents said that they had to limit their expenses before the beginning of the pandemic, so they continue to do so now.
According to the Russian Federal State Statistics Service, Rosstat, in 2020, the real disposable income of Russians dropped by 3.5%, and, in the first quarter of 2021, by 3.6%.
In January-March, according to statistics, Russian citizens lived on 32,612 rubles ($452) per month.
The average salary was 51229 rubles ($710) and increased by 2% in real terms, but most of the population did not see such income.
The median salary is only 27 thousand rubles ($375). The median income of all Russians is near this level.
According to Rosstat, only 6.4% of Russians have an income of 75,000 rubles a month ($1040), while 80.1% earn less than 45,000 ($624). More than half - 53.7% - live on less than 27 thousand rubles ($375) a month, that is $12 a day.
One in three - 34.5% - has an income of up to 19 thousand rubles ($264), that is, forced to live on 633 rubles, or 8.4 dollars a day.
One in five - 20.4% - earns up to 14 thousand rubles, or $6.2 a day, and 9.7% of the population's income does not exceed 10 thousand rubles per month ($138).