Russia's $500

From the MT:
"Russians' Average Monthly Salary Falls to $500 as Food Prices Skyrocket"

Amid soaring inflation, the average monthly salary across Russia shrank to 31,200 rubles ($500) in January, Gazeta.ru reported Tuesday citing the Economic Development Ministry. The current average represents an 8 percent decrease from the same month last year in ruble terms, and a nearly 50 percent plunge in dollar terms as a result of a severe economic downturn that has rapidly devalued Russia's national currency. Spending on food is expected to account for 50 to 55 percent of household income by the end of this year, business newspaper Vedomosti reported Monday. Food prices surged 22 percent in February alone, though that figure is expected to stabilize in coming months, Vedomosti said, citing VTB analysts. Russia's already struggling economy was hit hard last year by a halving of global oil prices — the country's No. 1 export — and by Western sanctions imposed over Russia's role in the Ukraine conflict. Russia's unemployment rate is also on the rise, having increased to 5.5 percent in January as the government and private sector fired employees amid the economic slump, Reuters reported. About a third of Russians expect their family's income to fall in the next couple of months due to wage cuts and layoffs, according to a poll by the state-run Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM).

 

^  This isn't surprising It's unfortunate that it has to affect the hard-working, ordinary Russian people. I have many friends in Russia and regardless of how we view politics, etc I still don't like to see them suffer. Many just say "We will live and we will see" and trudge through. ^

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/russians-average-monthly-salary-falls-to-500-as-food-prices-skyrocket/516947.html