Zee Beam News

RBC, 22.03.2006, Moscow 19:59:32 - Russia's population is expected to be 140.7m people in 2009, compared to 143.1m in 2005, the Economy Ministry's social and economic development scenarios for 2007 and through 2009 say. The document predicts that Russia's population will be declining by an average of 600,000 people a year. Thus, the population is forecast to be 142.5m people in 2006, 141.9m people in 2007, and 141.3m people in 2008. The working-age population will reduce to 88.4m people in 2009, which is 2.1 percent lower than in 2005 (90.3m people). The economically active population is anticipated to have sunk to 71.5m people by 2009 from 72.6m people in 2005.