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MOSCOW, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Russian companies' profits between January and November last year totalled 23.74 trillion roubles ($324.67 billion), data from the federal statistics service showed on Wednesday, down 11.6% from the same period in 2021.
Moscow's decision to send tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine last February resulted in Western sanctions against dozens of large companies and entire sectors of the economy.
First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov in December said the government was "very concerned" by the drop in corporate profits, citing weak financial performance from businesses as one of the main problems facing the Russian economy.
Russian commpanies' profits amounted to 1.93 trillion roubles in November, representing a 38% slump year on year, the Rosstat data showed.
Belousov on Wednesday said that Russia was considering introducing a one-off "voluntary" windfall tax on big business.
That prospect has been raised after Russia's slumping energy revenue and soaring expenditure pushed the federal budget to a deficit of 1.76 trillion roubles ($24.78 billion) in January. ($1 = 73.1205 roubles) (Reporting by Darya Korsunskaya Writing by Alexander Marrow Editing by David Goodman)
