Imported commodity flows in Siberia are registered mainly in Customs
House statistics as an independent trade of Siberian regions.
There is also an unregistered supply by the representatives of
big foreign companies in Moscow or other cities, as well as free
individual trade business. These statistics show that 1994 opens
a period of import growth in Siberia. In 1995 113 countries imported
their goods in Siberia.
In 1995 the biggest buyer on the World market among Siberian regions
was Tyumen Oblast, the value of whose import amounted to one third
of import into Siberia overall. The 1995 machine-building productions
share in the value of Siberian import was 43.3%. The high rank
of machinery and equipment import partially resulted from demand
from local businesses and enterprises, which were created with
foreign investments. Siberia's import has been increasing since
import bargains are highly effective under stable dollar-rubble
rates. Simultaneously a decline of effectiveness in export activities
caused reinvestment of capital from export to import. Russia's
increasing failure to provide its own goods, particularly consumer
goods, has resulted in continuing imports, despite multiple increases
in tariffs. These measures have only made prices higher, but without
creating pressure for increased internal production.