MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th July, 2020) US business operating in Russia has contributed almost $92 billion in direct foreign investment over at least 30 years, an annual report published Thursday has showed.
The 5th report was put out by the American Chamber of Commerce in partnership with the EY consultancy. It is based primarily on a survey conducted from March-April among 75 US firms, over a half of which have been present in Russia since the early 1990s or before.
"The total direct investments of US companies over the entire period of their operations in Russia amount to $91.86 billion. This is an estimate based on the data of the 75 companies taking part in the current survey, public information and the data of companies surveyed in the previous four years," the report reads.
Researchers noted that official figures were much lower due to the fact that US business invested in Russia through other countries and reinvested its proceeds from Russian operations, mostly to expand production and infrastructure needed by business.
Over a third of investments made over the whole period went into the energy and natural resources sector, although their share dropped to 5 percent in 2019. This year, survey participants said they would invest a combined $1.8 billion in Russia, 43 percent of it in the chemical industry and only 4 percent in energy and natural resources due to a steep decline in commodity prices.
