Russian GDP declines 1.2 percent in Q1 2016

Russia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) declined by 1.2 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2016, the Russian Federal Statistics Service said Monday.

Russia's GDP declined by 3.7 percent in 2015, mainly due to slumping oil prices, Russia's main export commodity, as well as Western sanctions imposed to punish Moscow for its role in the Ukraine crisis.

In April, Russian Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev estimated a decline of 1.4 percent in the country's GDP in January-March this year.

Also in last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin predicted during an annual Q&A session that the country's GDP would drop by 0.3 percent this year and grow by 1.4 percent in 2017.