In July, small and medium sized businesses in Russia saw their activity hit a record high for July, with the latest study by Promsvyazbank (PSB) showing the RSBI (Russian Small Business Index) hit 57.1 points, far above the 50-point mark which separates contraction and growth.

In the report, the bank said, “The current dynamics of business activity of small- and medium-sized businesses indicates an acceleration in its growth rates in all key components.”

PSB’s vice president Kirill Tikhonov said, “For the first time in two years, the sales of entrepreneurs have entered the upswing zone, indicating there are opportunities for the segment to grow at a faster pace than the economy. The high availability of financial instruments in July stimulated entrepreneurial activity, providing companies with more opportunities, which is especially important during their development.”

However he noted there were factors, like a shortage of workers, which were constraining hiring as businesses sought to increase capacity by hiring more staff. Regardless, Tikhonov said that entrepreneurs were optimistic they would see sizable growth in the near future.

Another recent report, issued by RBK, the business news website, examined data from the Federal Tax Service, and found that for the first time in history, Russian business revenues nearly doubled in 2022.

Russian businesses continue to expand internationally as well, with the number of Russian companies engaging in international trade increasing by more than 50% in under a decade, due to the expansion of companies which are not involved in energy exports, according to a statement by the director general of the Russian Export Center, Veronika Nikishina.