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The country’s gross domestic product is expected to shrink by 12% as a result of the Western sanctions imposed due to Russia's aggression against Ukraine, according to an internal Finance Ministry forecast obtained by Bloomberg. A potential oil embargo, a decline in Russian gas consumption by EU countries, and the mass exodus of foreign companies from the Russian market were named as the key reasons for the worst expected downturn since 1994. Natalia Lavrova, chief economist at BCS Financial Group, said the trend is likely to expand gradually, “with a lot of negative carrying over into 2023.”