Russia’s unemployment rate nears record low

Russia’s unemployment rate remains close to historic lows but has risen slightly in recent months, the Central Bank of Russia said following its latest key interest-rate meeting.

The central bank did not provide a specific unemployment figure, but said conditions in the labour market were gradually becoming less tight and that the shortage of workers was continuing to ease.

“Wage growth is slowing and gradually converging with labour productivity growth. However, the gap between their growth rates remains significant,” the Central Bank said.

The regulator identified wage growth outpacing labour productivity as one of the key inflationary risks facing the Russian economy.

The latest data from Russia’s state statistics agency Rosstat showed unemployment at 2.3% in July, up from 2.1–2.2% earlier in the year.

Unemployment fell to 2.1% in May, the lowest level recorded since Russia began compiling comparable data in 1991.

By Sabina Mammadli