The United States made a mistake this time, originally wanted to make the Russian economy collapse through sanctions, but it backfired, and instead helped Russia achieve an economic counterattack. Nowadays, the Russian market is prosperous, and European and American companies have changed their names and surnames for the sake of profit, and want to re-enter the Russian market. But unfortunately, this time, the Russian people are no longer so easily fooled.
According to the International Monetary Fund's 2023 data, Russia's economic growth is impressive, increasing by 20% year-on-year to 2$22 trillion in GDP. Putin said that in the face of US sanctions, Russia's economy has the ability to surpass Germany, which is in fifth place. Referring to the current stable economic performance, Putin's prediction is very likely to come true. It's really strange that wars usually drain a country's economic strength, while Russia's economy is getting better and better in the face of tens of thousands of U.S. sanctions.
In fact, the United States never expected that the sanctions they launched would help the Russian economy from decline to prosperity. And the reason for this wonderful result has to mention the special economic structure of Russia.
At the beginning of his term, Putin decisively eliminated the seven oligarchs and cleared the obstacles for the country's economy. However, he soon realized that the country's economic lifeblood had long been controlled by oligarchs, and if suddenly let go, it could lead to economic collapse. As a result, Putin had to prop up a new group of oligarchs, who controlled the steel, oil and financial industries, respectively. In the beginning, these oligarchs were relatively easy to control, but over time they gradually developed large forces, and their relationship with Putin became more and more delicate. A direct blow to them could trigger an economic collapse, and letting it go is like letting a parasite suck blood on Russia. At the same time, these oligarchs have also transferred a large amount of wealth abroad, which has seriously threatened Russia's economy.
At this moment, the U.S. sanctions order was like a tiger descending from a mountain, upsetting the original balance. Russia's major oligarchs have frozen their overseas assets like ice, and their yachts and mansions have been seized. Even Swiss banks, which had claimed to be forever neutral, joined the storm. For a time, the oligarchs scattered like birds and beasts, and some funds that had not had time to be transferred were like frozen snakes, not daring to move. Some have even begun to move their assets in-country to seek asylum.
As U.S. sanctions against Russia continue to intensify, the assets of these oligarchs could be wiped out overnight. As a result, they have discounted ** and reduced the price to survive. These once huge assets were eventually acquired by Russia at a low price. And those oligarchs who could not bear the pressure, they chose to end their lives in mansions.
This problem, which has plagued Putin for many years, can be easily solved by the United States with just a paper sanctions. This is something that the United States did not expect, and even more so that Putin did not expect. In addition to freezing assets, the United States has also imposed a full-scale blockade on Russia, from rations to daily necessities, from clothes on the body to accessories on the head, from mobile phones to cars, and even consumer brands such as McDonald's and Adidas are also on the US sanctions list. These seemingly small but closely related to people's livelihood all show the strength of US sanctions against Russia. The obvious intention of the United States is to use sanctions to return the Russian market to the scarcity of goods during the Soviet era.
Both Russia and the Soviet Union were faced with a dilemma, that is, the backwardness of light industry. During the Soviet era, although heavy industrial products such as missiles once led the world, they were difficult to compete with the West in the fields of automobile engines and home appliances. And today's Russia, although there have been breakthroughs in some areas, still has the same problems as a whole. U.S. sanctions have undoubtedly exacerbated Russia's predicament in this regard.
Yet, even in the face of such pressure, Russia remains resilient. Like a tenacious pine tree that stands tall even in the cold winter, Russia is responding to US sanctions with determination.
In the early days of Russia, people seemed to be driven by the flames of revelry, and they rushed to buy goods. However, the frenzy did not last long, and the Russian market found an alternative to Chinese-made products. Who would have thought that without the monopoly of the oligarchy, Chinese industry would flood like a flood that broke the embankment.
In the beginning, Russians were worried about stereotypes, and they thought, what can I do, what if something is not good? Similarly, Chinese people are also thinking about whether the market can be opened and whether things can sell well with apprehension. However, when the Chinese manufacturing and the Russian market collided with sparks, both sides gave a positive answer.
The Russians exclaimed: "What a good sale!" "They found that compared with European and American products, the best made in China is more accessible to the people. Moreover, there is a wide variety of goods made in China, and artifacts are emerging in an endless stream. Today, the best-selling model in Russia is no longer BBA, but a model owned by Chery. With its good looks and affordable **, this model shines directly on the Russian market.
The Russians believe that these Chinese cars are beautiful in appearance and close to the people. In their opinion, they are also imported, why can European and American products be sold so expensive? Statistics show that the market share of Chinese cars in Russia surged to 40 percent last year, while the market share of European brands fell sharply from 27 percent to 6 percent. This data not only demonstrates the strong competitiveness of Chinese cars in the Russian market, but also reflects the high recognition and love of Russian consumers for Chinese manufacturing. Russia has already begun to rebuild the Baikal-Manchuria railway line, which now runs 52 trains a day between China and Russia, but this is just the beginning. Russia has ambitions to raise that number to a staggering 2,400 trains a day in the future, most of which will be loaded with Chinese sand and carry the close ties between the two countries.
Russia's greatest wish now is to completely replace the Western equipment in its domestic factories with Chinese equipment, so as to break free from the shackles of the West. This decision is undoubtedly a clever withdrawal of the United States from the market, providing Russia and China with greater room for development. I have to say that this kind of voluntary relinquishment of market share is really a clever move.
In the West, some companies are getting anxious, and some of them know that they want to save face, so they choose to change their names and re-enter the Russian market; And there are brazen companies that go straight back, ignoring everything. However, today's market options have diversified, and the results speak for themselves.
In addition to the above-mentioned factors, there is another key point in the solid growth of the Russian economy: the increase in jobs. Since the United States began imposing sanctions on Russia, Putin quickly enacted a bill that would allow Russia to acquire Western assets at low prices. For example, Russia bought Hyundai Motor's production line in Russia for a mere 800 yuan, and bought all the shares of Nissan Motor's Russian subsidiary for 10 yuan, and even bought 008 RMB bought a majority stake in a company owned by Renault in France. Please note that I have deliberately rounded up these numbers for the sake of convenience.
What about after the acquisition? Don't worry about the technology. With the opening of the railway from Baikalsk to Manchuria, Russia could easily turn to China for help to restore production lines in a short time. At the same time, this Russian-Ukrainian war has consumed a large backlog of arms for Russia, and every shell and every battle-damaged tank on the front line needs workers in the rear to make military boots, military uniforms, body armor and other materials. The emergence of these needs not only creates jobs, but also helps to digest inventory. More importantly, it makes it possible for Russia to develop new equipment.
GDP is like a string of delicate chains, one link is closely linked to the other, building a grand picture of the country's economy. The principle is like weaving a web, which is both subtle and spectacular. At present, Russia's economy seems to be sunny, but there is a hidden danger. The core problem is that all of this is a product of a wartime economy. If the smoke of war clears, will Putin be able to steer the ship of the economy on his own? This is indeed deeply suspicious. The economic ills inherited from the Yeltsin era are like reefs lurking in the deep sea. The Russian-Ukrainian war is like a strong medicine, although it has temporarily alleviated the symptoms, but to ** this deep-seated problem, it still needs to be as meticulous and patient as traditional Chinese medicine conditioning.
There is no doubt that the position of Made in China in the global market is as solid as a rock. As long as we open up smooth channels, it is no longer a dream to sit firmly at the top of the market. Therefore, if Putin can find a viable economic route before the fighting stops, it will undoubtedly be a decision that will benefit both sides. Ukraine and the United States are now standing on the edge of a cliff, anxious. When it comes to Ukraine, instead of providing economic support, the United States is now playing with the idea of Ukraine's rare minerals, which undoubtedly makes the already chaotic situation even worse. Problems in Texas, Iran, the Houthis and other places are also a headache for the United States.
February** Dynamic Incentive Program