The state of the business environment in Russia against the background of socio-economic "shocks"

The Exhibition Scientific Research Center (VNITS) R&C, in cooperation with the Russian Convention Bureau, the Russian Union of Exhibitions and Fairs and the Union of Exhibition Developers with the support of the Roscongress Fund, has conducted a marketing study into the impact of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus on development of the Russian event industry.

By applying best practices during each phase of their response, manufacturers will be better positioned to survive the crisis and meet the surge in demand when the pandemic subsides.

Global growth is projected at — 4.9 percent in 2020, 1.9 percentage points below the April 2020 World Economic Outlook (WEO) forecast. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a more negative impact on activity in the first half of 2020 than anticipated, and the recovery is projected to be more gradual than previously forecast.

In 2011 Eric Schmidt — one of the most renowned figures in the IT industry and at the time Executive Chairman of Google — spoke at the session «The World According to Google» at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. What he said turned out to be remarkably prophetic, particularly when viewed from the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic and our experience of self-isolation.