Russian economy: SANCTIONS backfire, return to growth, investment surge

The Duran: Episode 2520 Despite repeated Western claims that Russia is on the brink of economic collapse, the latest data tells a very different story as the Russian economy returned to growth in March 2026 with real incomes continuing to rise and investment now reaching 23% of GDP. Alex Christoforou and Alexander Mercouris of The Duran unpack the stunning paradox at the heart of the sanctions regime: the very measures designed to cripple the Russian economy are instead driving a domestic investment surge that is making Russians wealthier, with GDP per capita now approaching levels comparable to Britain. Could it be that a decade of Western pressure has quietly produced the most resilient version of the Russian economy in modern history? 00:00:00 Introduction: Is the Russian Economy on the Brink? 00:00:30 Q1 Contraction Revised: January and February Figures 00:00:55 March Rebound: Economy Grows 1.8% Year on Year 00:01:30 Overall Q1 Performance: 0.3% Contraction 00:02:11 Growth Forecast Revised Down to 0.4% for 2025 00:02:43 Oil Prices and the Budget: Stabilization Underway 00:03:17 Putin Meets Economics Minister Rashettnikov 00:04:02 Real Incomes Rising as Inflation Falls 00:04:44 Investment at 23% of GDP: A Long Term Growth Driver 00:06:16 Why Sanctions Are Driving Investment Growth 00:07:15 The Sanctions Paradox: Capital Stays in Russia 00:07:46 EU 21st Sanctions Package Targets Shadow Fleet 00:08:08 Britain and Russian Tankers: 238 Pass Unchallenged 00:09:04 Russian Economy Up 20% Since 2016 00:09:50 GDP Per Capita: Russia Now Rivals Britain ***THE DURAN SHOP*** https://theduranshop.com ***REVERSE GEAR SHOP*** Athleisure with Style https://reversegear.shop/ ***THE DURAN COMMUNITY ON LOCALS*** https://theduran.locals.com Join Now Get 1 Month Free Trial ***OUR OFFICIAL CHANNELS*** ALEXANDER: https://www.youtube.com/AlexanderMercourisReal ALEX: https://www.youtube.com/alexchristoforou ***CRYPTO SUPPORT*** BITCOIN: 3JvdnoyWMb93hSRgk58ZstUxg11PW9mKSr ETHEREUM: 0xF39BdFb41f639B82E3D2Bf022828bC6394F533A3 LTC: MGFiMC18ZViF6DcCixMqAAP11TG4tF6Acj EMC2: EXX4KK9pZLx7uiLWnCXtp7iMKjtq6o5b6R ***DONATE*** CREDIT CARD: https://donorbox.org/the-duran SUBSCRIBE STAR: https://subscribestar.com/theduran PATREON: https://patreon.com/theduran ***VIDEO*** RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/theduran ODYSEE: https://odysee.com/@theduran BITCHUTE: https://www.bitchute.com/theduran/ ***AUDIO*** SPOTIFY: https://spoti.fi/3pMrfPD APPLE PODCASTS: https://apple.co/2H9Hk0a SOUNDCLOUD: https://bit.ly/354ASQ9 ***FREE SPEECH*** TELEGRAM: https://t.me/thedurancom X (Twitter): https://x.com/TheDuranReal?s=20 GAB: https://gab.ai/TheDuran MINDS: https://minds.com/theduran Amazing music contribution from Peter Brown. Follow Peter's music: https://soundcloud.com/peterboy100