Average income

The figure below 1) shows changes in real inflation-adjusted income per capita in Russia from the end of socialist planned economy in 1991 until 2004. Each year’s income is shown as a percentage relative to 1991. According to the Hoover Institution2) the per capita income at purchasing power parity (PPP) with other countries should be about 11,500 USD in 1991, 6,500 USD  in 1998 and 10,250 USD in 2005 3). As the figure shows the sharpest drop in real incomes took place in 1992 due to the liberalization of prices in January 1992. A significant drop also took place in 1998 due to a financial crisis when the value of the ruble fell dramatically from 6.3 rubles/USD to 21 rubles/USD.

Income per capita in Russia 1991-2004 (1991 = 100)

1)    The figure is based on numbers in “Child Poverty in Russia” published by UNICEF and Independent         Institute Of Social Policy, Moscow 2005 p. 56
2)    The Hoover Institution is a public research center at Stanford University
3)    Measured as the gross national income per capita at “purchasing power parity”  (or PPP) in real        international 2003 dollars. PPP quantifies how much you can buy for one USD; thus accounting        for differences in price levels among countries. For purposes of comparison, PPP has been        calculated at 2003 price levels. Source: www.russianeconomy.org/comments/042505.pdf