Russia's entry to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) will officially come into effect in August after President Vladimir Putin signs the bill ratifying Russia's membership ending 18 years of often bitter negotiations.
But Russia's membership is still mired in controversy amid fears among medium-sized firms that they will be put out of business as they will not be able to compete against imports made cheaper by a reduction in customs tariffs, according to media reports.
Reduction of the tariffs was a key condition for Russia's entry to the WTO. They are to be lowered from the average existing level of 9.5 per cent to 7.4 per cent in 2013, 6.9 per cent in 2014, and further to six per cent in 2015.
According to the World Bank, Russia's entry to the WTO will boost the nation's GDP by 3.3 per cent, or US$49 billion, in the first three years after joining through the removal of trade barriers. Over a decade, the gain is expected to be worth 11 per cent of GDP.
Commenting on the nation's membership to the WTO, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said: "This will create the right conditions for the further improvement of our business climate, for an influx of foreign investment and for boosting Russian exports while also retaining the possibility of giving support to our key branches of domestic economy."
In 2011 Russia exported US$522 billion in goods and US$54 billion in services, importing US$323 billion in goods and US$90 billion in services.