Russian Q1 economic contraction less than feared at 1.9%

Russia's economy shrank 1.9 percent in the first quarter under pressure from low oil prices and Western sanctions, the state statistics agency said Friday, a smaller contraction than had been feared. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev last month estimated that the economy had shrunk by two percent year-on-year in the first quarter while Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev projected the contraction had reached 2.2 percent. Citing preliminary data, the state statistics service said that Rus