INDUSTRIAL GROWTH IN RUSSIA

MOSCOW, July 15 (RIA Novosti) -- President Vladimir Putin received Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov on Wednesday. The prime minister told the head of state that industrial output had increased by 7.4% in the first six months of this year as compared to the same period last year. In June, the figure increased by 9.2% year-on-year. Hence, Kommersant reported that the prime minister would chair today's government session in a particularly good mood. According to the newspaper, the June growth looked especially impressive as compared to the previous months when industrial development obviously slowed down. According to the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, in May industrial output grew by a mere 5.5%, and slightly more (6.7% and 6.6%) in April and March. Meanwhile, the February growth stood at 8.7%. And even in January, which is traditionally a holiday month, it was 7.5%. So the slow growth came during the beginning of spring, government reshuffles and the administrative reform, Kommersant noted.