People and Money: Incomes, Consumption, and Financial Behavior of the Population of Russian Regions in 2000–2017

Resumo

Macroeconomic dynamics affects regional population incomes and the poverty level: positive changes in the regional distribution of these indicators slowed in the 2010s, and during the 2014–2017 crisis, there was a negative trend, which was more appreciable in the poverty level. Income dynamics has a stronger effect on consumption patterns and a weaker effect on the financial behavior of the population. The share of food expenditures declined in all regions until the 2014 crisis; it was minimal in the most developed regions. The structural shift in spending in favor of durable goods, including housing, is far from complete in most regions. The increase in expenditure on services is largely mandatory, due to the increase in utility rates; regional differences are small, with the exception of regions of the Far North. The spendings for reproducing human capital is low and varies slightly by region. The population of “wealthy” regions prefers to spend money on recreation and entertainment, but these expenses contract during income crises. Savings behavior is the most developed in the largest federal cities. Overdue debt on loans is higher in underdeveloped low-income republics and in resource-producing regions, where the population seeks to maintain consumption level by taking out loans. The basic factor of changes in the structure of consumption and in financial behavior are people’s incomes, but they are insufficient to explain regional differences; it is necessary to take into account demographic, settlement pattern, and institutional factors.