As part of the 23rd Yasin Conference, Ksenia Bobyleva presented at session A-5-4 on Measuring Economic Growth. Investment in ICT capital and intangible assets are a significant growth factor in the knowledge economy. 

A special issue of the journal Review of Income and Wealth has been published, dedicated to the conference “Experiences and Challenges in the Study of Income and Wealth in Eastern Europe and the CIS”. The conference was held in Moscow, at HSE University, together with the International Association for Research on Income and Wealth on September 17–18, 2019

The roundtable discussed the issues of growth limitations for the Russian economy, sources of growth in conditions of isolation, import substitution opportunities, reserves for increasing the efficiency in the distribution of resources, and the role of the state in restructuring value chains.

Within the framework of the XXIII Yasin International Scientific Conference on Problems of Economic and Social Development, at session A-5-3. Macroeconomic policy and long-term growth, the report "Market defects, intersectoral interactions and industrial policy in the Russian economy" was delivered by Anton Tolokonnikov.

The inefficient distribution of resources leads to a lower rate of economic growth and a lower level of social development compared to what can potentially be reached. This is due to distorting taxes and subsidies, and market imperfections. Market imperfections are the costs incurred by economic agents to overcome obstacles related to imperfections of competition, information asymmetry, and barriers to market access. The impact of market imperfections is determined by the structure of intersectoral relations. Market imperfections in the upstream part of production chain (intermediate goods production) bring larger distortions than market imperfections in the downstream part of production chain (closer to final goods). The correlation of the sectoral structure of taxes and subsidies with market imperfections can increase the efficiency of resource allocation in the economy and, thus, increase output and social welfare. The instrument of such improvement is the industrial policy, which contributes to a change in the sectoral structure of net taxes with respect to market imperfections. To what extent do the criteria of the industrial policy used in Russia contribute to a more efficient distribution of resources in the economy? What are the possibilities for improving it? In this article we use approach from Liu (2019) and Input-Output tables for Russia in 2016 to arrange sectors in accordance with the size of the effect of a subsidy of 1 ruble on aggregate output. The highest effect is in supporting sectors, producing productive services, for instance, car and equipment rental services; financial intermediation services; some transport services. It is shown that support for industries with a high proportion of intermediate products in output leads to an increase in aggregate output. Support of sectors with a high employment-to-value-added ratio leads to a decrease in aggregate output.

Ksenia Bobyleva's preprint was published in the WP2 series "Quantitative Analysis in Economics". The paper compares estimates of the contribution of intangible assets to growth within the 1993 SNA and the 2008 SNA. Estimates are made using the KLEMS databases. Data for European countries in the period 1995–2009 the use of the 1993 SNA and the 2008 SNA are compared, as are data for Russia and European countries in the period 2004–2016 using the 2008 SNA.

In April, The Conference Board Inc. website published a new data release using Russia KLEMS data on hours worked in the Russian segmen

Experts believe that increasing productivity, diversifying the economy, as well as developing human capital and expanding non-resource exports will help boost Russia's economic growth. But the state policy has to be smart. This was discussed at a series of round tables and expert discussions on the topic of productivity at the XXII April International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development, organised by HSE University and Sberbank.

On April 19, Apurva Sanghi, Lead Economist of the World Bank, a partner of HSE University and Russia KLEMS, presented his report at the XXII HSE April Conference.He presented the results of a study that examines the contribution of global value chains (GVC) to the development of the Russian economy over the past two decades, and identifies the possibilities of GVC as a locomotive of economic growth. The growth-enhancing capabilities of the GVC allow for the identification of potential obstacles, as well as for a number of economic policy proposals to address them.While this study describes a sanctioned Russia—less connected to global markets, less innovative, and with less transparent private-public interactions that hinder fair competition—it also identifies significant potential benefits for the Russian economy from more intensive participation in the global division of labor. While sanctions remain a major obstacle to foreign direct investment, there are various measures that Russia could take to make its business climate more attractive for expanding trade and investment

On April 15, at the XXII April Conference, a round table "Productivity, Diversification and Sustainable Economic Growth" was held. It was attended by Russian and international experts in economics.At the event, the participants discussed the following issues:- What are the risks for the economy's dependence on raw materials for its long-term growth?- What are possible measures to diversify the economy?- What are the possible negative medium-term consequences of diversification in terms of falling incomes, inequality and poverty?- Does the Russian economy require diversification? If so, what are the main approaches to its implementation?