Power struggle rages over Russia's state statistics

Reports that Russia's economy ministry is set to take control of the national statistics agency has sparked fears that indicators crucial to monitoring the country's economic woes could become skewed.Data from the Rosstat state statistics agency has been key in measuring the extent of the country's economic crisis, triggered three years ago by tumbling oil prices and Western sanctions over Ukraine, and is thus key to forecasts about when recovery is possible.Enter into this volatile mix a switch