The consumer basket is a set of goods and services that provide a comfortable and full-fledged stay of a person throughout the year and satisfy his minimum needs. The composition of the consumer basket directly affects the subsistence minimum, which is reviewed every year depending on the price level.

What is included in the consumer basket in 2016?

On January 1, 2013, a new consumer basket which will be valid until 2018.

The consumer basket primarily includes food products, which make up about 50% of its value (for comparison, in Western Europe, this figure does not exceed 20%). It is worth mentioning that most Russian families also spend more than half of the family budget on food.

The second group includes non-food products - clothes, shoes, hats, underwear, medicines.

Well, the third group of the consumer basket consists of services: public utilities, transportation costs, cultural events, etc.

So, if you look at the table below, which shows the products and services included in the consumer basket for 2016, you will see that according to government calculations, an able-bodied citizen consumes 100.4 kg per year. potatoes, 114.6 kg. vegetables, 60 kg. fresh fruit, 126.5 kg. bread and bakery products, 58.6 kg. meat and 18.5 kg of fish products, respectively. Cultural services account for 5% of the total monthly expenses.

What does this mean per person per day?

This means that the average citizen Russian Federation for a normal existence, one should consume 300 g of bread per day, potatoes - 280 g, vegetables - 300 g, fresh fruits - 160 g, sweets - 60 g, milk and dairy products - 800 g, vegetable oil and fats - 40 g.

And also, once every 2 days, eat one egg, be content with 160 g of meat per day, and, well, consume 350 g of fish per week. As for cultural development, here an able-bodied Russian citizen has a chance to living wage once a month to go to the cinema or the theater, for more money for these purposes is not provided.

In particular, we have:

In the Sverdlovsk region, they want to increase the cost of living for the 2nd quarter of 2016 for 5 rubles compared to the current rate.

The draft resolution of the regional government states that from April it will amount to 9,675 rubles per capita per month.

The subsistence minimum for pensioners will increase by 21 rubles - up to 7,976 rubles a month, and by 84 rubles - up to 9,964 rubles - for children.

living wage for able-bodied population will decrease. True, it is also insignificant - by 10 rubles, up to 10 thousand 309 rubles a month.

The subsistence minimum is calculated on the basis of the consumer basket.

When the subsistence minimum for the first three months of 2016 was set at a meeting of the regional government, it was 4.4% lower than in the 4th quarter of 2015. Then the Minister of Economy of the region Dmitry Nozhenko explained that when calculating the social indicator for the first quarter, they use prices for August-October 2015 and, as a rule, at this time, potatoes and vegetables, which occupy 15-20% of the food basket of the consumer basket, become cheaper.

The minister noted that food prices for November-December 2015 will be taken into account when calculating the subsistence minimum in the Sverdlovsk region for the second quarter of 2016. Since it changes insignificantly, it can be concluded that statistical authorities did not reveal a significant increase in prices during this period.

And in conclusion, we give one more table - the consumer basket of the USSR, i.e. a set of basic food products according to the norms recommended by the Institute of Nutrition of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences and VNIIKS, in comparison with the consumer basket of today's Russia, planned for you and me by Rosstat:

It shows how the Russian authorities are trying to save calories in today's food basket - at the expense of the cheapest products - cereals, flour and bread, and even at the expense of potatoes. But products containing proteins and vitamins, without which there can be no complete nutrition, and therefore healthy people, have been reduced to the limit.

Living wage- this is the minimum level of income at which a person is able to support his life by paying for the most necessary: ​​food, accommodation, medical treatment and some Additional services. All these services and goods are included in the consumer basket, and the cost of living is determined based on its composition, as well as the level of consumer prices.

At the legislative level in the Russian Federation, the subsistence minimum is calculated according to federal law No. 134-FZ of October 24, 1997 (the law "On the subsistence minimum in the Russian Federation"). In accordance with this document, its value should be reviewed quarterly in each of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

Rosstat recorded a sharp rise in the price of basic foodstuffs. The main reason for the rise in prices was the high prices for imported vegetables and fruits.

Over the first five months of the year, the minimum set of food products in Russia has risen in price by almost 10 percent, to more than four thousand rubles. A sharp increase occurred in April-May - in the first four months of 2017, the minimum set of products increased in price by only five percent.

The growth in the cost of the food basket, according to industry experts, is due to a significant rise in the price of vegetable products, which has already reached 80 percent in some positions. However, this situation will not last long: already in June, the first harvest from the south of the country will appear on the shelves, and by September, according to producers' forecasts, vegetable prices may fall below cost

The cost of the minimum set of food products per month on average in Russia at the end of May 2017 amounted to 4,036 rubles and, compared to the previous month, increased by four percent, and by almost 10 percent since the beginning of the year.

The food minimum in the capital in May amounted to 4,945 rubles (an increase of more than 11 percent since the beginning of the year), in St. Petersburg - about 10 percent since the beginning of January. This is stated in the latest issue of the Rosstat report "Information on the socio-economic situation in Russia." Meanwhile, inflation for January-May, according to the same department, amounted to 1.7 percent.

In the minimum set of food products, Rosstat takes into account different types meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, bread, vegetables and fruits, cereals, vermicelli, several types of oils, tea, biscuits, caramel, sugar and salt - 33 items in total. When calculating, the service uses the average prices for products in the region and the volume of consumption of goods.

In May 2017, Rosstat emphasizes in the report, a significant impact on the growth of consumer prices was still exerted by the rise in prices for fruits and vegetables. Of the observed types of vegetables and fruits, prices for white cabbage, potatoes, onions, carrots and beets and apples have increased significantly.

At the same time, cucumbers and tomatoes fell significantly in price. At the same time, there was a decrease in prices for all observed types of cereal products, including buckwheat. In addition, domestic cheeses fell slightly in price.

From the data of the Unified Interdepartmental Information and Statistical System (EMISS), which contains information on average prices in Russia, it follows that from January to May, the most significant increase in prices was for white cabbage, potatoes, onions, and carrots. Cucumbers, eggs, chilled chickens, flour, millet, pork and herring fell in price.

According to experts, this is not surprising. It's just that May is the peak month for a surge in prices, because the volume of imported products reaches a maximum. This is because the country does not yet have enough storage facilities that would allow domestic products to be consumed before their own summer harvest.

But already from June, vegetables from our south will go, and by September we will see a drop in prices, products will be sold on the market below cost.

In retail chains, the rise in prices is explained by the fact that in the last spring month, a shortage of imported potatoes from Egypt was recorded on the Russian market, Russian suppliers of foreign root crops significantly increased purchase prices. Purchase prices for milk and dairy products also increased.

To stabilize the cost of vegetable products, the Ministry of Agriculture plans to build a network of wholesale distribution centers in 48 regions of the country in the coming years. They will be placed near million-plus cities and large transport and logistics hubs. Then, presumably, sharp jumps in prices for fruits and vegetables can be avoided.

In the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the state proclaimed itself socially oriented, legal and democratic. To the best of its ability, the government tries to provide citizens and other permanent residents in its territory with decent conditions. To do this, it uses certain standards that make it possible to determine the real needs of people, calculated according to the established methodology and fixed normatively.

The following indicators will play a key role in 2015:

1. living wage;
2. consumer basket;
3. minimal salary.

The essence and purpose of the consumer basket

The concept, types, principles of settlement, the procedure and grounds for calculating the subsistence minimum for residents of Russia of different groups were established by the law of the Russian Federation of October 24, 1997 No. 134. According to its provisions, the cost of living (PM) is the cost (price equivalent) of the consumer basket (PC) and mandatory fees and charges. The consumer basket is a complex of food products, as well as a set of services and other goods necessary and sufficient to maintain the normal health of an individual and ensure his life.

Based on these two categories, the Russian state plans in 2015 to:

• establish living standards for the population;
• implement public policy, respectively, in the field of (especially significant) social protection.

If, for objective reasons, a citizen's cash income in 2015 turns out to be less than the minimum established, the state will bring them in line with the standard through pensions, subsidies and other social payments. This is theoretical. And practically at the end of 2014, the officially established minimum wage (that is, wages for a full day, week or month) was less than 67% of the living wage for an able-bodied person. This situation has existed for several years, although it is absurd and illegal (it directly contradicts Article 33 of the Labor Code).

Before the start of the military conflict with Ukraine and the collapse of the ruble, the leadership of the Ministry of Labor and the government announced plans to gradually bring the “minimum wage” to the subsistence level over the course of three years. The first step in this direction was to be taken in 2015: it was assumed that by the middle of the year (minimum wage) would reach 85% of the subsistence minimum. However, with the fall of the national currency and rising inflation, this is no longer the case.

The composition of the consumer basket in 2015

In the pair “living wage – consumer basket”, the last category is primary. On its basis, the calculation of the minimum money, nominally sufficient for the existence of a person, is calculated. The PC is installed at two basic levels:

1. In general, for the Russian Federation, it is being developed by the government with the participation of a tripartite commission for the regulation of social and labor relations. It is fixed at the level of the Federal Law.
2. Separately, for each subject of the federation, it is established by the representative (legislative) bodies of the subjects of the Federation, taking into account the climate, the needs of the local population for food and non-food products.

In addition, compared to the PM, which is reviewed four times a year, the consumer basket is more stable. It is subject to revision only once every five years. And since the composition and procedure for the formation of the all-Russian PC was established relatively recently - by the profile Federal Law No. 227 of 03.12.12, a revision of this indicator in 2015 is not expected.

Unlike food, goods and services that are part of the consumer basket are not specified in a specific list. Instead, their price ratio with food, expressed as a percentage, is established. The all-Russian basket implies the provision of services to a person and the purchase of industrial goods for amounts that make up 50% of the cost of purchased food. Thus, the total price of the consumer basket is calculated by multiplying the cost of grocery items by two.

It should be noted that Rosstat and research institutions, for the purposes established by law, have the right to invest in the concept of "consumer basket" a slightly different content. For example, inflation and the consumer price index in 2015 will be calculated using a different consumer basket than the one above.

Living wage and consumer basket: differences

This indicator (PM), like the consumer basket, is approved at two levels. The minimum normatively defined for the Russian Federation as a whole is used by the government to adequately assess the standard of living of Russians in the development and implementation of federal social programs and state social policy; justify the wages, scholarships, and allowances established at the national level (read also:). On this basis, the federal budget is calculated.

The living wage in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation is used for approximately the same purposes, but at the regional level:

1. development and implementation local programs social support;
2. provision of material assistance (payment of child benefits; support for low-income individuals or families living alone; provision of subsidies for direct payment of housing and, which is also important, utilities);
3. formation of budgets of subjects of the Russian Federation.

Both types of living wage are subject to review and approval every quarter. Although, the development and consolidation of this indicator is often delayed. So, for example, as of November 20, 2014, among all regions of the PM, only the Sverdlovsk Region (rubles) established for the fourth quarter:

• per capita - 8370;
• for a workable - 8934;
• for a child - 8483;
• for a pensioner - 6888;

The current federal living wage is established by Decree No. 905 of September 6, 2014 for the II quarter (rubles):

• per capita - 8192;
• for a workable - 8834;
• for a child - 6717;
• for a pensioner - 7920.

Features of the consumer basket in Moscow

The regional subsistence minimum for all three main population groups in Moscow is established by the city law of 05/15/12 No. 23, and the consumer basket - by the law of 06/19/13 No. 32. However, the indicator, which should already be approved for the 4th quarter of 2014, has not been specified even for its 3rd quarter. Therefore, the norm of the Decree of the Government of Moscow dated August 27, 2014, to be more precise - No. 485-PP, is in force, directly in accordance with which the minimum amount for the II quarter is (in rubles):

• per capita (main indicator) - 12,145;
• for a person able to work - 3,896;
• for children - 10,443;
• for pensioners - 8 528.

The procedure for calculating the subsistence minimum for Moscow fully reflects the specifics of the region. For example, the ratio of the cost of services to the price of food is established: for able-bodied citizens in the amount of 127%; for pensioners and children - 75%. And this despite the fact that the country as a whole, the figure was only 50%.

findings

You don't have to be an economist to understand the real rise in inflation and the food price index. Every Russian has experienced a jump in the cost of the basic components of the food basket due to the fall of the ruble and the ban on imports from abroad.

Obviously, in connection with this, respectively, in 2015, the subsistence minimum and wages should objectively increase. However, in the context of a systemic crisis, the state has entered the economy mode and cannot afford to invest in the social sphere. Therefore, how will the officially established food basket in 2015, one can only guess.

Now more and more people are actively interested in all government decisions that can significantly affect their lives. Political education, and at the same time the activity of the broadest masses, is growing.

A particularly important issue that can attract the closest attention of the population is the cost of the consumer basket in 2016 and in the current period. These indicators are especially important for citizens, since they have the main influence on the formation of most other economic norms. After all, only by evaluating the costs of the population for the most important needs, one can understand at what level it is now worth setting the subsistence minimum. Yes, and this indicator is of decisive importance for the minimum size of potential salaries. It can be called the cornerstone on which almost everything else is based.

But as we talk about these curious numbers and the near future, there are some interesting factors that cannot be overlooked. Knowing them, it is easier to understand how the volume of consumer spending is formed, what influences it and what is included in it.

Shopping cart is different

Since consumer spending is estimated in rubles, one can easily guess that their volume is influenced by the prices of basic goods. And at this point, you can consider a serious problem. It is impossible to give exact figures for such a huge and heterogeneous country as Russia. There are regions where prices seem exorbitant. There are also subjects in which the cost of goods pleasantly pleases. By equating them all to a single average level, you can put in a difficult position an extremely large number of people.

Naturally, this fact is not new and has long been known to the authorities. They did not rack their brains for a long time and reasonably left the right to determine the scope of the basket to regional leaders and governments. And those already personally decide whether the consumer basket will increase in 2016 in Russia.

Another significant nuance, which is also easy to guess, is the direct relationship between inflation and all of the above figures. After all, the growth in the cost of basic services and various goods inevitably leads to an increase in the monetary value of the consumer basket. It cannot be otherwise. Therefore, a constant increase in spending is inevitable. And the only question is the rate of increase. They often make you wonder.

Basket contents

Speaking about what, according to leading economists and financiers, the basic needs of ordinary citizens consist of, it is necessary to mention that consumer spending consists of three global components.

Food industry, consisting of most of the products necessary for a healthy life. This includes fruits, without which it is difficult to maintain immunity.
household sphere, which includes numerous clothes, shoes and medicines.

And the social sphere. It includes the cost of utility bills and the cost of attending entertainment, cultural events.
In general, the composition of the consumer basket for 2016 will not change. Its basis will be the previously named first group. It is assumed that it will be more than half of its volume. Among the main foodstuffs available in it will be bread and other products made from flour, potatoes, a variety of vegetables, fruits, meat and some fish. The second group is extremely noticeably inferior to the first in scale. The third one can't keep up with her either. And this shows a rather serious difference between the advanced Western countries and our state. There, the first group rarely exceeds a quarter of the entire composition of the basket. Therefore, we can only rejoice at the fact that there are countries where a regular review of the composition and cost of the basket exists only in the plans, and we have not been among them for a long time.

Cart cost

Finding out what the consumer basket will be in 2016, it is important to note that it is now calculated according to a modernized formula that was introduced just a few years ago. To get the exact figures, you need to double the sum of the cost of all the goods in the basket. This will allow you to get the desired amount.

Speaking about the capital region, it is safe to say that the volumes will exceed ten thousand rubles. In the regions, of course, the numbers will be smaller. On average, they will be slightly above 7 thousand. But it is impossible to avoid a noticeable spread. It will be influenced by a variety of factors. So, in the southern black earth regions, the cost of flour products is much lower. This reduces the total amount of existing spending available there. But to say that this significantly reduces the local standard of living is impossible. After all, it, differing from region to region, remains relatively even and the same.

Nothing unexpected will happen

When making a forecast about what the consumer basket of 2016 will be in Russia, it is necessary to highlight several key nuances and facts.

Even the most negative circumstances will not be able to stop consistent growth. The planned level will gradually rise, not picking up a rapid pace, but not slowing down more than necessary.

The exact size of growth is not yet known. But most likely so far is that it will be in the region of 500 rubles. This is how it has been in most regions of the country for the past couple of years. That is, every quarter we can expect an increase in the level of consumer spending by 100-200 rubles, no more.

Those who, mindful of the recent economic problems of the state, are afraid of unexpected jumps or simply freezing at the current level of the price of the basket, need not worry too much. The near future does not prepare anything terrible in this matter. Even the composition of goods and services, which can be revised, will not undergo major changes. Only minor changes in the proportions of products are possible. Nothing will be changed globally.

All this means only that it is worth continuing to enjoy your own life and just be reasonable in solving any financial issues. And then, pretty soon, the consumer basket will cause only lazy curiosity, since incomes will go far ahead.