Finance & economics | Crime, then punishment

As Europe falls into recession, Russia climbs out

Real-time data show a subdued but strengthening economy

A waiter prepares a table in one of the panoramic view restaurants showing former hotel Ukraine (R), one of the seven 1950's Stalin skyscrapers - now a hotel of Radisson chain, and skyscrapers of Moscow's International Business Centre (Moskva City) in Moscow on September 5, 2022. (Photo by Alexander NEMENOV / AFP) (Photo by ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP via Getty Images)

These days Russians do not have much to boast about, so they take what they can get. Social-media trolls are posting videos, intended for European audiences, showing gas stoves left on full blast. What might cost hundreds of euros in Berlin comes to a few roubles in Moscow. The taunting is childish, but it hints at a deeper truth: the economic war between Russia and the West is at a delicate moment. While Europe teeters on the brink of recession, Russia is emerging from one.

This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Crime, then punishment”

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