Estimating the state sector in Russia

Here we present our estimates of the state sector in Russian economy and its’ dynamics since 2000. In our estimation, the average share of the state sector in GDP consists of three elements: the share of SOEs’; the public administration sector; and the value created by state unitary enterprises (SUEs). The details about methodology and components estimation are presented in “Methodology and details” section.

A SOE is an organization controlled by the state, which holds directly or indirectly a majority or a significant minority block of shares amounting to not less than 10 percent. This definition complies with the OECD Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State-owned Enterprises and allows us to carry out cross-country analyses using our estimates of the share of SOEs’ in GDP, market capitalization and employment. Quantitative measures of SOEs’ share are the result of analyzing wide sample of Russian companies.

The public administration sector can be defined as the input equivalent to the value of public services, paid or unpaid, produced for the benefit of society. The estimation of public administration sector is based on national accounts data.

Our research allows us to estimate the size and the dynamics of state sector and to analyze its’ impact on economics and financial markets. The components of total state share in Russia are comparable to similar measures in other countries. Some of these comparisons are presented in “Cross-country analyses” section. At the same time the SOEs’ share in GDP remains the most difficult measure for cross-country analyses. We hope that our research will stimulate the further development of international standards of methodology for assessment of this measure.

According to our research the share of the state sector in GDP in Russia is about 46% in 2018. This corresponds with the latest international assessments, for example, in Moody’s report published in 2019 the share of the state sector estimates between 40% and 50% (RBC).

We hope that our data despite some reasonable simplifying assumptions will be useful for research and studies, for development of measures for economic policy, for educational purposes and in many other ways.

The study of state sector and its’ impact on economics and finance remains a very important direction of our academic research. We expect to regularly update our data and indices and add new research.

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Under the terms of use, any information taken directly or indirectly from this source should be cited as Privatization in Russia: 30 Years After. The Size and Effectiveness of the State Sector / A. Radygin, A. Abramov, R. Entov, M. Chernova, G. Malginov — M.: Publishing House «Delo» RANEPA, 2019.— 64 p.