OREANDA-NEWS In 2023, Russian companies still prefer Western European equipment to affordable analogues, but they have almost stopped planning such purchases. This is evidenced by the results of a survey of business leaders conducted by analysts of the Gaidar Institute, the study is referred to by RBC.

The share of firms that are actually going to purchase equipment from Western Europe has fallen to a historic low of 9 percent this year. Compared to 2021, the indicator collapsed by 46 percentage points. At the same time, the share of companies that would like to have Western European equipment increased by 10 percentage points over the year (from 62 to 72 percent), exceeding the figure of the pre-sanction 2021.

There are also fewer organizations that plan to purchase equipment from the USA or Japan — in 2023 there are practically no such companies left. The preference for machines and machines from these countries has also decreased (25 percent versus 39 percent in 2021).

Experts of the Institute explain the trend by the fact that manufacturers are not satisfied with the existing analogues. Now an alternative is offered by suppliers from China, Turkey, India and other neutral non-CIS countries, as well as domestic manufacturers. The request for equipment purchases from these countries has grown over the year, and in the case of Russian products, the level of preference has become the highest in nine years of observation. Nevertheless, in fact, there are no more companies that are going to purchase Russian equipment.

At the beginning of the year, two-thirds of Russian industrial enterprises recognized dependence on foreign equipment. Coal mining, paper and paper products production, woodworking, production of medicines and materials, rubber and plastic products need such equipment the most.