Russian President Vladimir Putin attended the investment forum "Russia Calling!" in Moscow on Wednesday to present the current state and future development of the Russian economy.

Putin said that trade between Russia and China exceeded 240 billion U.S. dollars in 2023. Both Russia's policies toward Chinese investors and China's policies toward Russian investors are very effective. Nearly 90 percent of the trade has been settled in yuan and ruble.

Putin also highlighted the extensive cooperation between Russia and China in the automotive industry, noting that Chinese cars have become qualitatively better and cheaper.

Putin pointed out that Russia's gross domestic product grew 3.6 percent last year and 4.1 percent from January to October this year. The growth was mainly driven by manufacturing industries and sectors with high added value. In the first 10 months of this year, Russia's manufacturing industry grew 8.1 percent.

He said that Russia has a record-low unemployment rate of just 2.3 percent. In September, the number of information technology employees grew 8.1 percent year on year, and 3.9 percent in the manufacturing industry.

Putin noted that this year, a program was launched to support voluntary long-term savings. Relevant contributions are insured and co-financed by the state, and tax deductions can be obtained for the funds contributed. As of Nov. 22, over 2.1 million depositors had joined the long-term savings program, bringing in 145 billion rubles. By 2026, the total amount of funds raised under the program must exceed one percent of GDP.

The two-day forum, themed "The future of the capital and the capital of the future," focused on areas such as foreign investment in the Russian economy, as well as providing information and insights about business opportunities in Russia. The forum brought together the heads of leading domestic and foreign companies, investors, and experts.

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