MOSCOW, July 30 (Xinhua) -- The Russian central bank Monday raised its estimate for the country's gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the second quarter of this year to 1.8-2.2 percent from the previous 1.0-1.4 percent.
"Holding the World Cup in Russia made a positive contribution. It is estimated that demand from foreign fans increased the volume of services in the hotel, transport and restaurant sectors," the bank said in a monthly analytical report.
Russia's GDP grew 1.3 percent in the first quarter, according to the country's state statistics service Rosstat.
The 2018 World Cup held between June 14 and July 15 attracted 7.7 million football fans, according to an official FIFA estimate.
The central bank forecast that GDP growth will be 1.5-2.0 percent in both the third and the fourth quarters.
Under these conditions, the expansion of consumer demand will result in a gradual inflation increase to 3.5-4.0 percent by the end of 2018, it said.
On Friday, the central bank said it expected Russia's inflation to temporarily exceed the targeted 4 percent next year due to a possible increase in the value-added tax to 20 percent from the current 18 percent starting in 2019.
