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简析俄罗斯及其作为世界贸易大国的发展的经济学论文 1985-1988年期间经济改革发展以来，俄罗斯的私有化的步伐大幅加速，俄罗斯的法律框架已经不足以满足经济发展的需要。俄罗斯需要重新设计一个法律制度，以保障公民和市场自由化的权利。在1991年10月24日，俄罗斯议会成立了“司法改革概念”，它涵盖司法改革的重要方面和发展方向。 主要的法律举措是宪法，联邦宪法法律，联邦法律，总统令，政府规章和俄罗斯联邦地区组成的法律。宪法包括国际法和国际条约，及国内法律体系的一部分。 迄今为止，虽然俄罗斯的法律环境已经有了巨大改善，一些关键部门仍未制定全面的立法制度，如所有权，侵权法和税收。由于缺乏来自国有企业必要的法律监管，乱执行，信息披露不足等困难，为经济犯罪创造了机会。 业务实体 俄罗斯面临的最大挑战是如何有效和公平地转换国有企业的私有制。 Russian And Its Development As World Trading Power Economics Essay Since the introduction of economic reforms during the period from 1985 through 1988 and the pace of privatization accelerated substantially from 1993 through 1995, the legal framework in Russia was no longer adequate. Russia needs a legal system to design to protect the rights of citizens and free market. On October 24, 1991, Russian Parliament established the “Judicial Reform Concept”, which covers aspects and directions of the judicial reform. The main legal acts are the Constitution, federal constitutional laws, federal laws, presidential decrees, governmental regulations, and laws of regional constituents of the Russian Federation. The Constitution includes international law and international treaties as part of the domestic legal system. Though, Russia has seen a huge improvement in its legal environment, to date, a comprehensive legislation system still has not been enacted in some key sectors, like ownership, torts and taxation. The absence of necessary laws, chaos in implementation, insufficient information disclosure and difficulties from state-owned enterprise create chance for economic crime. Business Entity The biggest challenge confronting Russia is how to efficiently and equitably convert state-owned enterprise to private ownership. In November 1994, a federal law, the Civil Code was signed to regulate all enterprise’s formation, ownership, legal status, liquidation and shareholders’ rights. Finally, the privatization was completed through the sale of state-owned property to public investors with the consent of government. After that, the Civil Code recognized a variety of legal forms of business entities. However, state-owned enterprise still account for a sizable portion of Russia economy, especially in certain key sectors. In Russia, the relation between employer and employee is regulated by the Labor Code and other specific laws. Those laws protect employees in respects of salaries, working hours, social security, employment termination and discrimination. Any provision in an employment agreement that goes contract to the Labor Code is illegal. Competition Protection The government regulator of market competition in Russia is the Federal Anti-monopoly Service (FAS). Its primary object is to ensure compliance with anti-monopoly regulations. The FAS has the power to prevent monopoly, unfair competition and government aids that harm competition. Because of the history and social characters, monopolies and settled pries still exist in some market, such as electricity, water and railways. Even for those companies, their activities are subject to the control of the FAS. The competition laws prescribe that granting government aids must receive formal approval from the FAS, and any agreement that might result in the control over prices or reduced market competition will be prohibited. FAS have the right to audit companies’ compliance with the law and impose fines on any entities that violate. Taxation Another problem coming with privatization is taxation chaos, which was caused by the collapse of the collapse of central collection system and considerable “off the books” transactions. Therefore, Russian undertakes the tax reform and redesign tax system. Now, the Federal Tax Service is responsible for collecting and submitting taxes to the Ministry of Finance, which has the ultimate rights to settle the federal budget and taxation policies. Tax disputes are quite common in Russia. Taxpayers can ask the Ministry of Finance or the tax authorities for clarification or submit claims to courts. To resolve the budget deficit, Russia government imposes a high tax burden on corporations and individuals. In all, there are more than 100 different taxes in Russia. In some industries, tax spending constitutes 20 to 30 percent of total income. However, tax evasion is still a chronic problem for the government. Individual property tax Each entity must register with the tax authorities when forming. Every month, they are required to file tax return. The final payment for the year is due on 28th March of the following year. Individual Taxation In Russia, tax residence is determined by the number of days stayed in Russia. From 1 January 2007, a 13% flat personal income tax rate applies to resident’s income. Foreign Investment As Russia is increasingly becoming a stable investment climate with plentiful natural resources and a huge consumer market, it attracts more and more foreign investment. Consequently, Russia makes a huge effort to improve its investment climate, especially the regulatory system. Currently, many restrictions on foreign investment have been removed, even though some sectors remain closed. In May 2008, Russia established the law “On Strategic Industries” and “On Foreign Investment” to regulate foreign investment. The “On Strategic Industries” defines those companies with strategic importance to Russia and require foreign investors to get approval from the government before starting business. Impact of Globalization Today, globalization should not be merely conceived as economic forces and financial flows, but is actually a process of social and cultural re-engineering. As Michael Cox insists, globalization makes “states into agencies of the globalizing world”. For Russia, the challenges come not only the transnational flows of capital and commodities, but also a transformation of global political prospective, which means increasing international interference in democratic policies, politic system, national security and economic transition. In Ponarin’s dramatized interpretation, “Since the end of the Cold War, Russians have encountered a powerful, alien culture that makes them feel powerless, disadvantaged, and inferior. Globalization has nurtured the emergence of a global culture rooted in the North-European Protestant ethic and epitomized by US culture.” [1] Economic Development In 1991, the year that communism failed and the Soviet Union broke up, there was high expectation for Russia’s economic and democratic development. However, more than ten-year independence, billions of dollars international assistance and considerable foreign advice cannot turn around Russia’s slipping situation. Difficulties in fiscal reforms and a dependence on short-term borrowing to finance budget deficits led to a serious financial crisis in 1998. Under the Putin administration, Russia went though a vigorous recovery. Its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) doubled climbed from 22nd to 11th largest in the world. As the economy get increasingly integrated into the international, Russia meet numerous new challenges, like investment confidence, a decline in ruble, vulnerable financial system, trade deficit, high inflation, wealth inequality and financial crime. Figure Russia Economy Since Fall of the Soviet Union [2] Public Debt After the failure of Soviet, international organizations including IMF and World Bank provided billions of financial assistance to support Russia’s recovery. Unfortunately, those loans failed to meet expected results but became Russia’s heavy burden, which is equal to 3% of Russia’s GDP. From 2000, large trade surplus brought a rapid appreciation to the ruble. Russia could firstly meet its external debt obligations and even make large advance payment of principal on IMF loans. Figure Russian Public Debt [3] Figure Russia Total External Debt Stock [4] International Trade Figure Russia GDP Structure in 2008 [5] Now, trade takes a large part in Russia’s economy. The large majority of exports are raw materials and fertilizers. From 1999, the trade surplus ballooned to $33.2 billion, more than double the previous year’s number. However, in 2001, the trend shifted, resulting from the worldwide declining prices on export market. From then, international prices on raw materials market began to dominate Russia’s export performance and even its commodity-driven economy. Figure Russia Trade Composition in 2009 [6] #p#分页标题#e# Russia tried to protect the surplus by trade barriers, which will be removed in near future after Russia’s participation in WTO. On January 1, 2004, the Stabilization fund of the Russia Federation was established to balance the federal budget if the oil price falls. Additionally, to defend worldwide financial crisis, the National Prosperity Fund is established and to be investment in some risky instruments and foreign companies. Moreover, Russia develops a long-term strategic and economic partnership with nearby countries, especially European and China. In addition to raw materials trade, the cooperation also includes travels, finance and technology. Off-shoring For years, India has been the top choice of off-shoring software. However, the new trend for the last several years is towards Russia. Advantages of off-shoring to Russia include strong mathematical and engineer backgrounds, a strong government-support IT industry, cultural proximity to the West and low labor expense. Figure Off-shoring Destinations Worldwide [8] Over the next few years, Russia will significantly increase research investment and strengthen its new position in the world market. Crime and Terrorism In the twenty-first century, the handling of transnational crime and terrorism has become an important part of international policy. Terrorism Taking advantage from technology and explosion of international media influence, terrorism became a major threat to national security during the 1970s and 1980s. In Russia, Islamic terrorism attacked citizens by hostages and suicide bombing against public infrastructures. At the same time, the government has long been criticized by the international press for its human rights violation in its counter-terrorism operations. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International made great efforts to stimulate condemnation of both sides. In the June 2008 G8 Summit, eight nations agreed to cancel some of Russia’s old Soviet debt to use the saving in Russia’s security. On June 3, 2010, Russia hosted the international anti-terrorism forum and invited top security officials from 63 countries and the UN counter-terrorism bodies. Mafia Globalization undoubtedly facilitated the transnational organization crime in the last decade. The expansion of international business, the under-regulation in international legal system and development of technology communication system all trigger organized criminals to move beyond boards. As of 2001, more than 200 Russian mafia groups operated trans-nationally, many in the West. The two common features of global terrorism and the organized crime - money laundering and proliferation – require an effective international law system and sustained multilateral coordination among nations. Corruption Since the Asian financial crisis, the IMF has included transparency and anti-corruption in its members as the core mission. Corruption has a long history in Russia and appears to expand beyond the government control. In the 15th Annual Transparency International Report, Russia slid from 146th place to 154th, out of 178 countries. Corruption not only disturbs the market, hide results of international investment and dispel foreign investment, but also increase Russia’s vulnerability to currency crisis as a result of higher foreign borrowing-to-FDI ratio. Corruption has become a huge obstacle in Russia’s economic development. Civilization Since the Soviet collapsed, there appear to be a cultural vacuum in Russia. Although the so-called Russia Orthodoxy tries to defend the Western culture expansion, Russia is still a European nation. The idea of freedom, human rights, justice and democracy take a central position in Russians’ value system. In recent years, Russia closely cooperates with western countries and NGOs in the reforms of Enlightenment, establishment of parliamentarian-ism, formation of judicial system and transition from central planning toward free-market system. Although the prospect of Russian’s acceptance into European Union is still remote, it is agreed that Russia is naturally integrating into the West. At the same time, some Eurasian-ism experts strongly encourage Russia’s participation in international institutional system. They hope Russia will constitute a crucial bridge link between Europe and Asia as well as the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans. Impact of NGOs International Monetary Fund (IMF) The International Monetary Fund is a special financial forum that the main purpose of which is to openly discuss the fiscal policies of its members and to avoid severs exchange restriction on international currencies. IMF also provides short-term and specialized loans to developing countries to erase their crisis. Since the late 80s, IMF began to lend to post-Soviet countries and other countries with non-market mechanisms, to finance their economic and judiciary reforms. However, it has no experience in emerging post-Soviet countries, by the end of the 1990, many programs failed. In January 1992, Russia applied for membership in the IMF and joined in June. To facilitate the transition toward a free market, IMF provided $22 billion loans and participated into Russia’s legal reform. Figure Disbursement of International Funds from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to the Russia Federation in 1996 - 1990 The scale of the reforms and initiatives launched were most critical. The objects launched in 1996 included improving the quality of drafting, legislation, and legal education. Indeed, several aspects were underestimated. The country size, political instability and history made only 20 percent of investment intended to finance legal reform was disbursed. U.S. – Russia relation might be another reason for the IMF implementation failure. As the most powerful contributor to IMF, the United States is capable of influencing decisions of IMF, which is a big concern for the Russia government. United Nations (UN) Russia’s succeed the Soviet Union’s position in the United Nations at the January 31, 1992, including the permanent membership on the UN Security Council. Although the legality of the succession has been questioned by many experts, Currently six United Nations Theme Groups in Russia are assisting it to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): HIV/AIDS. Russia is experiencing one of the fastest growing epidemics of HIV/AIDS in the world. Within the UN the Joint United Nations Team on AIDS is the mechanism in response to the HIV/AIDS problem. Their primary functions are HIV prevention, treatment, strategic and financial planning, and partnership with civil society. Education. Due to the economical and social reasons, the secondary education rate in Russia has decreased during the last decade. The Priority National Project “Education” and UNESCO program aimed at modernizing the education system and enhancing the education quality, especially the methodology. Economic Development The incidence of poverty increased sharply in Russia during the period of economic transition. There are two reasons: a sharp economic contraction and increased income inequality. In November 2004, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) launched a three-year program, “Sustainable Reintegration and Recovery in the North Caucasus”, to provide economic assistance. UNDP moved from endorsing an economic view of poverty to include an ethically formulated perspective and evaluate development in terms of freedom and social justice. European Union (EU) The European Union is Russia’s largest trading partner, accounting for more than 50% of all foreign Russian trade. Now, the EU and Russia are implementing the common spaces and negotiation to replace the current Partnership and Co-operation Agreement (PCA) to promote bilateral trade. (From European Commission > Trade > Bilateral Relations / Russia, http://ec.europa.eu/trade/creating-opportunities/bilateral-relations/countries/russia/) When EU firstly established, Russia chose not to join it. Instead, Russia and the European Union agreed to be an “equal partner” of the EU sign the Partnership and Co-operation Agreement (PCA), which provides a political, economic and cultural framework for relation ship between Russia and the EU. The object of both the Common Economic Space and the PCA is to create an open and integrated market and remove barriers to trade and investment. Moreover, the common space also promotes a mutual visa-free travel regime, combating terrorism and other forms of illegal activities, education, and cooperation in crisis management. Beside the bilateral economic activities, the EU and Russia also cooperate in international issues. On November 24th 2010, Russia finally reached a agreement with European Union, the last opposing member of WTO, and ended its 17-year long battle for WTO membership. The new agreement about further remove Russia export taxes will replace the current Common Spaces and PCA. Now, the prospect of Russia joining the EU is still unclear. Some analysts said that Russia is “decades away” from qualifying for EU membership, while some experts hold a optimistic attitudes about their cooperation.#p#分页标题#e# World Trade Organization (WTO) After nearly 17 years’ effort, Russia will finally become a member of the World Trade Organization by 2011. Russia first applied for membership of WTO in June 1993. However, many of its policies were not compliant with WTO requirements. According to WTO, there are some minimum standards to be met in several areas. Russia agrees to make efforts to stop piracy and counterfeiting intellectual property In the agreement with European Union in December 2010, Russia will increase its natural resources export from 2012. Russia also discusses terrorism issues with some WTO members. However, Russia will face even more and tougher problems after being accepted into WTO. The most severe difficulty is that Russia will face a new set of prices for its imports and exports on world markets. Other problems include opening up its domestic business to foreign investment and liberalizing its market operation. Principal WTO accession commitments of Russia Non-Agricultural Market Access; Services Commitments, includes banking & securities, telecommunications and business; Agriculture Issues, includes market access and non-tariff barriers. According to Rutherford, Tarr and Shepotylo’s analysis in 2006, a successful completion of Doha Development Agenda, which include the elimination of export subsidies, substantial cuts in tariffs and reduction in domestic support for agriculture, will reduce Russia household consumption by 0.3%. On the other side, all households will gain from the liberalization of barriers against foreign investment. World Bank The ultimate goal of World Bank is to eliminate poverty. In June 1992, Russia became a member of World Bank. World Bank’s primary objective in Russia is to smooth the economic transition. From 1993 to 2001, World Bank has provided Russia 55 loans averaged $1 billion per year, a commitment representing 0.4 percent of GDP and 10 percent of the government’s expenditures. Most loans are concentrated in natural resource exploration and technical assistance. However, according to World Bank’s evaluations, only 20 percent of the commitment received satisfactory results. World Bank does not play an active role in Russia’s economic reform as it expected. Experts from Russia argued that the weakness of World Bank’s assistance is timing: most loans were supplied in before 1998 when Russia had not started the reform. |
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