Russian industrial output drops 6.6% in April

Russia’s industrial output slowed by 6.6 percent in April primarily due to complications caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The biggest fall was recorded in manufacturing, where output fell 10 percent compared with April 2019, while mining activities dropped 3.2 percent and the distribution of water and utilities came up 11.4 percent short. Before the lockdown was imposed, the industrial output grew by 0.3% year-on-year in March. Russia's commodity-dependent economy suffered a double hit in March and April. The first was from the coronavirus pandemic, which paralyzed much of its trade, but collapsing oil prices destroyed revenues from its main export.