The development of the economy in the late 19th century. Features of the development of Russia in the early twentieth century

Answer plan:
1. General characteristics of economic processes.
2. The role of the state in the economy.
3. Development of industry and finance.
4. Development of agriculture.

Answer:


1. By the end of the XIX century. the system of Russian capitalism took shape. The period from the mid 80's to the mid 90's. entered the history of the country as a "golden decade" in the development of the economy. The state actively patronized the development of domestic industry, banking, transport, and communications. Significant foreign investment began to flow into the country. But the following factors negatively affected the development of the Russian economy:

  • the multistructural nature of the economy - along with the private capitalist, monopolistic and state-monopoly, small-scale (handicraft industry), semi-serfdom and natural-patriarchal (community) structures were preserved;
  • uneven and profound disproportions in the development of individual sectors;
  • dependence on foreign grain markets and foreign investment, as a result of which Russia had a hard time surviving the crises of 1898-1904 and 1907-1910;
  • high rates of economic development were combined with low labor productivity (2-3 times lower than in Europe), a lag in production per capita and technical equipment of labor;
  • the Russian bourgeoisie did not have access to power and was not free to make decisions, it never left the class framework of the guild merchant class.

2. One of the most important features of the economic development of Russia was the intervention of the state in economic life, which was expressed:

  • in the creation of state-owned factories (military production), which were excluded from the sphere of free competition;
  • in state control over railway transport and the construction of new roads (2/3 of the railway network belonged to the state);
  • in the fact that the state owned a significant part of the land;
  • the existence of a significant public sector in the economy;
  • in the establishment of protectionist tariffs by the state, the provision of state loans and orders;
  • in the creation by the state of conditions for attracting foreign investment (in 1897, a monetary reform, which eliminated bimetallism and established the gold backing of the ruble, its convertibility).

3. Shaking at the end of the 19th century. leading countries of the world economic crisis led to the creation of powerful monopoly associations. The first of them appeared in Russia in the 1880s. Cartels and syndicates became the predominant form of monopolies in Russia, dividing the markets for their products and setting uniform prices. Large associations were created in various industries. Thus, in 1902, the Prodamet syndicate united 12 metallurgical plants in the south of Russia (60% of metal sales in the country). The Produgol syndicate controlled almost all coal sales.
Features of Russian monopolies:

  • high concentration of production and labor force;
  • dependence on government orders and government loans;
  • attraction of foreign investments (these investments accounted for up to 40% of all investments in the economy).
The process of monopolization also captured the banking sector. 5 large banks were formed that controlled more than half of financial transactions:
  • Petersburg International Bank
  • Russian-Asian Bank
  • Azov-Don and others.
Banking features:
  • high concentration of capital;
  • close relationship of banks with the Ministry of Finance and the State Bank;
  • rivalry between domestic and foreign capital in the domestic market of the country.
One of the features of the industrial development of Russia is that entire layers economic life were out of the modernization zone. A significant weight in the economy was retained by handicraft and handicraft industry. It was this industry that had the widest market.

4. Russia is a country dominated by agriculture, 82% of its population was employed in this industry. It ranked first in the world in terms of production: it accounted for 50% of the world's rye harvest, 25% of the world's wheat exports. Agriculture features:

  • grain specialization of agriculture, which led to agrarian overpopulation and land depletion;
  • dependence on grain prices in the foreign market in the face of increased competition from the United States, Argentina, and Australia;
  • the low capacity of the bulk of the peasant farms, the increase in production was noted only in the landlord farms and the farms of wealthy peasants (no more than 15-20% of all peasants);
  • Russia is a “zone of risky agriculture”, which, with low agricultural technology, led to chronic crop failures and famine;
  • the preservation of semi-serfdom and patriarchal survivals in the countryside (landownership, the communal system of land ownership and land use).
  • The agricultural sector was included in the modernization process only partially. It was the problems of agriculture that became the main core of the economic, social and political life of the country at the beginning of the century.
Russia has embarked on the path of modernization lagging behind Western Europe. The contradictions in the development of the Russian economy were connected precisely with the insufficiency of drawing its individual sectors into modernization. Autocracy and the political dominance of the nobility were a serious brake on the path of economic development. All this led to instability in the development of other spheres of social activity.
History of the economy: tutorial Shevchuk Denis Alexandrovich

7.4. Features of the economic development of Russia in the late XIX - early XX centuries

By the middle of the XIX century. in Russia, a general structural crisis of the feudal-serf system was objectively ripe. Serfdom hindered the development of commodity-money relations, especially commercial agriculture. In addition, the society was characterized by an extremely low educational level (22% over the age of 9-22, while in developed European countries this figure was more than 85%). This affected the slow formation of the domestic layer of entrepreneurs, necessary for the industrialization that had begun. The main indicator of the failure of the existing economic system was the Crimean War of 1853-1856. As a result of hostilities, the export of bread was reduced by thirteen times, and flax by eight times. Imports of cars decreased tenfold, cotton imports decreased by two and a half. At the end of the 50s. Russia found itself in a state of virtually insolvent debtor. State debt reached 1 billion rubles. The budget deficit increased six times - from 52 to 307 million rubles. Inflation was growing, the consequence of which was the disappearance of specie from circulation. Despite government prohibitions, she was not kept inside the country and went abroad. Particularly alarming was the state of the credit system. Its bankruptcy forced the government in 1859 to stop issuing loans to landowners secured by estates.

In general, the increase in the production of large-scale industry in 1860-1900. was about 5% annually. At the same time, the leaders were the textile, food, mining and metallurgical industry. At the same time, the complexity of the sectoral structure of the economy was also observed due to the emergence of new industries, for example, a complex that provides the construction and maintenance of railways.

The construction of railways, which made it possible to establish a strong connection between the individual territories of the country, led to the improvement regional structure economy (Table 15).

Table 15

Regional structure of the Russian economy in the 19th century.

The remote territories of the Far North and Far East.

The formation of a market economy in Russia had its own specific features. Russia, like Germany, embarked on this path later than other European countries, that is, it was in the role of a catching up country, included in the "second echelon" of the development of capitalism. However, this made it possible to largely use foreign experience in science, technology and organization of production. Yes, back in the 80s. the first Russian monopolies in industry appeared and the first cartel association of two St. Petersburg joint-stock banks - the International Bank and the Russian Bank foreign trade. The corporatization and syndication of the industry is actively developing. By the beginning of the XX century. Russia ranks first in the concentration of capital and production, but from 1/3 to 1/2 of the accumulation in industry was carried out at the expense of foreign capital. At the same time, two major reforms contribute to the development of the national business sector during this period of time: the monetary reform of 1895-97. and tariff in 1891. The first of them, which went down in history with the name of the Minister of Finance S.Yu. Witte (1849-1915), marked the country's entry into the Gold Standard system and was characterized by the transition to a hard convertible currency - the golden ruble. The second - put high economic barriers on the way of importing goods, thereby forcing the import of not finished products from abroad, but capital for their production.

The rapid growth of industry stalled in 1900. The crisis of overproduction in Europe affected. Then followed: the lost Russo-Japanese War, the first revolutionary explosion of 1905-1906, the breakdown of public finances. Of particular importance for the continuation of industrialization was the solution of the land issue. The inspirer and conductor of the new agrarian policy was the Chairman of the Council of Ministers P.A. Stolypin (1862–1911). According to the new peasant reform, all communal land was divided into two parts:

1) land where redistribution has not been made for 24 years. It passed into the ownership of the peasants;

2) the land where the redistributions were. In this case, the peasant could demand that the land he used after the redistribution be assigned to him.

In addition, everyone who separated from the community could, in the event of a striped land, demand a plot in one place.

Farm- a peasant economy resulting from the relocation of a householder to a new allocated plot.

Cut- dedicated land plot with the preservation of peasant buildings in the village.

An important role in the implementation of the reform was played by the Peasant Land Bank, established in the 1980s. for resale to peasants of landowners' lands. This bank also financed Stolypin's resettlement policy aimed at reducing the agrarian overpopulation of the country's center by resettling more than three million people to the "free lands" of Siberia, the Far East, Altai, and Central Asia. Of course, the settlers faced enormous difficulties: insufficient financial support from the state, lack of roads, remoteness of territories, poor adaptability of the body to new climatic conditions, etc. However, there were also significant achievements. If in the country as a whole the sown area increased by about 10.5 hectares, then in those regions where most peasants left the community, the amount of sown land increased by 1.5 times. In 1911–1913 the country received 28% more grain than the United States, Canada and Argentina combined. Agriculture began to move to an intensive type of reproduction associated with the use of machinery and mineral fertilizers. At the same time, there was no appropriate material and financial base for carrying out agrarian reforms in Russia, therefore, the implementation of the reform as a whole was half-hearted and carried out with the help of coercive administrative measures without taking into account regional features of development.

In 1909–1913 a new economic upsurge began, which covered almost the entire national economy of the country.

During this period, the total average annual increase in industrial output amounted to 9%. At the same time, receipts from industrial production in the national income almost equaled receipts from the agricultural sector, and industrial products covered 80% of domestic demand. The process of monopolization intensified. Large associations arose most quickly in heavy industry. Cartels and syndicates also operated in light industry, and the Knopp group, which united cotton factories, had signs of a trust. However, these associations did not occupy a predominant place in the industry as a whole. The methods of domination of Russian monopolies in the market, which provide for the containment of production volumes and an increase in sales prices, were also distinguished by their originality. In the course were not only the regulation of the production and pricing policies of enterprises that were part of the monopoly, but also the payment of bonuses to them in the event of a decrease in the allocated production quotas, as well as the practice of closing existing enterprises and prohibiting the creation of new ones. Still of great importance for development large-scale production had foreign capital. Russian monopoly associations usually emerged as joint-stock companies, which allowed them to circumvent the provisions of the antimonopoly legislation developed in the country according to the best European models.

Domestic and foreign trade achieved notable successes. The volume of domestic trade in 1913 was 18 billion rubles, or one and a half times more than in 1909. Foreign trade turnover also increased during this period by about 1.5 times and amounted to 2.6 billion rubles by 1913 ., and the volume of exports confidently exceeded the volume of imports - 1.5 and 1.1 billion rubles, respectively. Before the First World War, Russia was one of the leading grain exporting countries in the world.

The foreign trade surplus served to strengthen state budget. In addition to income from foreign trade, among the sources of the state budget were income from the wine monopoly and the farming system, from state-owned railways, as well as indirect taxes. However, budget expenditures grew much faster than revenues. The money was spent on a huge bureaucratic apparatus, on maintaining the landowners' farms, on military needs, and on paying interest on foreign loans. As of January 1, 1914, Russia's state debt on external and internal debts amounted to about 9 billion rubles. Thus, at the beginning of the XX century. the domestic economy developed faster than the power structures, which were unable to solve the existing problems of the social and industrial situation in a peaceful way. Tsarism, in the hope of relieving tension in the country, dragged it into the first world war. During these years, the ideology of an organized, planned economy on a national scale began to be tested in practice.

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In the late 1890s - early 1900s. most of the countries of the world were already developing along the capitalist path. In each state, capital played its role and influenced economic development in its own way. In the Russian Empire, which quickly moved to the stage of industrial development, capitalism wore a special form - military-feudal.

Attempts to reform at the end of the XIX century.

In the second half of the XIX century. Emperor Alexander II made several important changes in the internal life of the country. As a result, the basis for further transformations was created, which even the counter-reforms of the emperor, who was assassinated on March 1, 1881, could not stop. The next ruler, Alexander the Third, devoted a lot of time to the economic stability of the country. Under him, the government was engaged in production, industry, laying railways, and mining. To the main achievements of the 1880s - 1890s. can be attributed:

  • Start of construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway.
  • The introduction of the ruble, backed by gold reserves.
  • Strengthening the role of entrepreneurs.
  • Stimulation of competition between Russian and foreign companies.
  • Increasing demand for manufactured goods.
  • An increase in the number of workers in enterprises and mines, thanks to which a new social class appeared.
  • Growth in demand for various groups of industrial goods and an increase in exports of agricultural products.

The state, represented by the emperor and the government, constantly increased investments in metallurgy, coal, oil, gas, iron and steel production. Financial stability contributed to the rapid development of the banking sector and the implementation of a protectionist policy towards enterprises and peasants.

Economic Development Trends

In the 1890s the state entered on the wave of the rise, which began in the mid-1880s. after a series of reforms. The Russian government at that time actively supported the following sectors of the economy:

  • banking sector.
  • Industry and production.
  • transport infrastructure.
  • Development of communications between production, agriculture, trade, market.

The attraction of foreign investment also played a big role in successfully overcoming the economic lag behind the countries of Western Europe. The main sources of funding were Belgium, France, Germany and the UK. Joint ventures were created, including mines, monopolies, joint-stock companies b companies.

At the same time, negative manifestations were observed, caused by several factors:

    Low labor productivity against the backdrop of high rates of economic development.

    Heavy dependence on external grain supplies and foreign investment, which caused several industrial and production crises. One of them was observed during 1898 - 1904, and the second - from 1907 to 1910.

    Disproportionate placement production forces in the Russian Empire.

    The existence of a multi-structural structure of the economy. At the turn of the XIX - early XX centuries. in Russia there were private capitalist, monopoly and state-monopoly enterprises. At the same time, the small-scale industry was actively developing.

  • In the countryside, capitalism in the early years of the twentieth century. never got in. In the villages there was a community with a semi-serf and natural character of farming.

So, in the twentieth century. Russia entered as a capitalist country in which there were ambiguous trends in economic development.

Emergence of capitalist enterprises

Capitalist relations in the economy contributed to the emergence of new business forms that at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries. determined the directions of development of the market, trade, sectors of industry and agriculture.

We are talking about monopolies and their varieties - cartels, syndicates, trusts.

Under monopoly commonly understood large enterprises, which were created by the state in various industries and the banking sector to control the production and marketing of a particular type of product.

Cartel - the very first form of monopolies, in which the participating enterprises entered into an agreement on the regulation of production volumes, the conditions for the sale of goods, and the hiring of labor. At the same time, all companies that were part of the cartel retained financial and industrial independence.

Syndicate - enterprises agree among themselves on the distribution of orders, the purchase of raw materials and the sale of goods through a single sales company. All members of the syndicate renounce financial independence, but retain industrial independence.

Trust - any independence is taken away from enterprises, which causes them to turn into departments of a large production process. Trusts monopolize a certain industrial branch, turning out homogeneous products.

Emergence of monopolies

For the first time, monopolistic associations, which became cartels, appeared in Russia at the end of the 19th century. Such enterprises penetrated the sugar and oil industries. They quickly developed and subordinated smaller companies. In the twentieth century country has entered the height of the industrial crisis, which caused the ruin of enterprises, especially small ones. Large monopolies, represented by syndicates and penetrating into metallurgy, the mining sector, and mechanical engineering, “survived”.

The very first syndicate appeared in 1902 and was called Prodamet. Eight years later, Prodamet controlled more than 80% of the sale of ferrous metallurgy and products made from it. Almost immediately after Prodamet, a syndicate for the sale of pipes and pipe-rolling production, Pipe Sales, appeared.

The second stage in the development of syndicates began in 1907, when such enterprises arose as:

  • "Produgol".
  • "Nrodarud".
  • "Prodvagon".
  • "Roof".
  • "Copper".
  • "Mazut".
  • The Nobel Brothers Association, etc.

A characteristic feature of the second stage of monopolies in Russia was that syndicates and other similar enterprises penetrated the sugar, cotton, linen, light, rubber, and transport industries.

There were also large banking syndicates, with many branches and offices throughout the country. They worked not only in Russia, but also abroad, kept in touch with foreign banks. Financial activities such structures was beneficial to industrial, oil, transport enterprises.

Gradually, the banks became shareholders in large companies, buying up and reorganizing factories, establishing control over the roads. There was a fusion of industrial and banking capital, which contributed to the formation of financial capital. Before 1914, he owned the transport, manufacturing and banking sectors, trade, and industry.

The state intervened in the economy all the time, creating conditions for the development of state-monopoly capital. So the imperial house and the government gained access to mechanical engineering, transport, metallurgy, and shipbuilding. Regulation was carried out first through government orders, and then through the creation of state-monopoly organizations.

Monopolies were present in large areas, cooperated with private capital and did not sink into agriculture. Only a small part of the agricultural sector was involved in these processes, so the natural character of production continued to dominate there.

Agriculture

Russia at the turn of the XIX - XX centuries. remained an agrarian country, where more than 80% of the population was employed in agriculture. Capitalism penetrated the villages very slowly. The process accelerated only after the agrarian reform in 1906, the author of which was Pyotr Stolypin.

The characteristic features of the development of agriculture at that time were:

  • Agrarian overpopulation and land depletion due to the grain specialization of the agricultural sector.
  • Price policy for grain The foreign market was determined not by the Russian government, but by strong competition with other "grain" states - Australia, the USA and Argentina.
  • Agriculture was unprofitable and unprofitable, the increase in production was only among the landlords and wealthy peasants.
  • Constant crop failures and famine, which are constantly due to outdated farming methods.
  • Modernization only partially affected agriculture.
  • Preservation of landlord and communal landownership, which hindered the penetration of capitalist elements into the agrarian sector.

The situation began to change only after 1906-1910, when an agrarian reform was carried out in Russia. Most of the peasants left the communities, were able to create their own farms, receive support from the state. The landlords continued to advocate an intensive way of farming, they slowed down any innovations, giving preference to the accumulation of capital.

However, before the First World War, the agricultural sector received a new impetus to development. This allowed Russia to increase the export of grain, food, and begin a larger-scale modernization of agriculture.

Outcome

Russian economy at the end of the 19th - in the first years of the 20th centuries. showed conflicting development trends. The industry and production actively developed, banking system, transport, railways were laid, which at that time were the main communications in the country. The extractive sector, oil, coal, metallurgy enjoyed state and private capitalist support.

Monopolies made it possible to overcome the crisis in production and form a new social class of workers. But the agricultural sector did not get into this process, although Russia was an agrarian country.

In the 80-90s of the 19th century (just after the democratic reforms, the assassination of Alexander II and the launch of counter-reforms), the empire's economy experienced a period of growth. Capitalism began to take shape. Cities and villages began to affect modernization process carried out comprehensive reforms. The rapid economic development of Russia at the beginning of the 20th century resulted, in particular, from these two decades.

In contact with

Early 20th century modernization

In the economy of our country in the initial period of the last century, the following were noted:

  • business development;
  • increase in capital (internal, external) included in the economy;
  • an increase in the number of hired forces at enterprises of various types.

In just two decades, the empire turned from an agrarian into an agrarian-industrial state (still more than 80% of the population was involved in the agricultural industry).

This is the main feature of Russian modernization - its accelerated course. Russian capitalism developed at the highest rates.

The path that England has traveled for several centuries, Russia "ran" for several decades. According to the main indicators, the country was gradually catching up with such economic leaders as England, Germany, France and, taking a tight place in the 2nd echelon of modernization.

Attention! Political scientists, sociologists and economists distinguish the following echelons of economic modernization: the first (completion of the stage of formation of the capitalist system) - the British Empire, the United States of America, Germany, the French Republic; the second (states of developing capitalism) - the Russian Empire, Austria-Hungary, Japan; the third (weak growth of capitalism) - the states of Latin America.

The cyclical nature of the economy

Our state, integrating into world economy, adopted its characteristic cyclicity (a feature of Russian modernization at the beginning of the century). Periods decline and rise economy of the first years of the century can be represented as follows (table):

The economy began to respond to all political processes taking place in the world: wars, revolutions, changes of governments and rulers.

monopoly capitalism

In the Russian economic system of the first decades of the 20th century (following other countries), monopoly capitalism began to take shape.

It was a special phenomenon, as a result of which the central white global conglomerate leading industry and banking associations.

These trends occurred around the world, but with different time intervals. Depending on the mentality of peoples, historically established cultural values, and so on.

Signs and features

The characteristics of monopoly capitalism are:

  • the formation of large industrial groups - monopolies;
  • dominance of money export over commodity(opportunities to attract cheap labor, cheap raw materials in third world countries and colonies);
  • economic redistribution (territorial division) of the world between the largest monopolies (Russian companies took an active part in this redistribution, which rather resembled political, colonial expansion);
  • bitterness of colonial wars;
  • the formation of imperialism.

Businessmen began to actively influence foreign policy, defending their own commercial interests.

The Russian economy also had special characteristics of this type capitalist relations:

  1. It was formed against the backdrop of the preservation of autocratic power and landlordism, class inequality and the absence of social rights.
  2. The Russian Empire was a huge multinational power, where different regions and different peoples existed in different socio-economic conditions.
  3. Capitalist monopolism was formed in a special order solely because the Russian Empire made the transition to the capitalist system later than a number of other European states.

Stages of formation

The formation of monopoly capitalism in the Russian state is divided into 3 main stages:

  • 1880-90s - the appearance of first cartels who agreed on sales markets and prices;
  • 1900-08 - the emergence of syndicates, banking monopolies, the beginning of the merging of industrial and banking capital;
  • 1909-13 – formation of syndicates, financial capital.

Forms of monopolies

There were two main forms of monopolies in the economy of the Russian Empire:

  • marketing - cartels and syndicates;
  • production - trusts and concerns.

The fundamental differences between different forms of monopolies from each other and the periods of their formation in the Russian Empire are presented in the table:

Industry development

Russian industry of the early 20th century went through a period of transformation. new branches of production appeared, the achievements of technology and science began to be used.

Russian industry in this period of time was formed and developed with the active participation of foreign and state capital.

Agricultural development

Despite the accelerated pace of industrial development, Russia remained an agrarian country. But despite the fact that it was the leader in the export of agricultural products, the situation in this sector of the economy was quite difficult:

  • grain specialization led to agrarian overpopulation and depletion of the lands of the South and South-East of Russia;
  • in the main, the farms were low-power (this also applied to peasant and landowner farms);
  • non-use of technology led to frequent crop failures and famine;
  • in the countryside, semi-serfdom patriarchal remnants were preserved, modernization in this sector was very slow.

In addition, Russia is in the zone of “risk farming”. Due to climatic conditions (floods, drought, frosts), crop failures often occurred.

Important! During this period, the United States, Latin American countries and Australia began to compete in the world agricultural market of the Russian Empire.

Reforms of P. A. Stolypin

The reforms of P. A. Stolypin, carried out by him in 1906-1910, were aimed at accelerating the modernization processes in agriculture. For these reforms:

  • peasants received the right to leave the community;
  • peasants could get a loan from the Peasants' Bank for the development of the economy;
  • the state provided assistance to peasants who wanted to move for.

All these measures led to the accelerated development agriculture and increase the profitability of agriculture, its marketability and

connections with, but they did not remove the social tension that existed in the Russian village.

The fact is that Stolypin did not dare to take the most important step - the elimination of landlord landownership, which would lead to land

redistribution and would solve the problem of small land of peasant farms. In this way, he would get rid of the strong class inequality and spur the economy.

Transport

In Russia at the beginning of the 20th century, the transport system did not undergo significant changes. The leading role in the transportation of goods and logistics was played by railways, as well as water communications (there were many private shipping companies in Russia). Highway roads there were very few. Equipped tracts were laid between the cities.

Financial system

The Russian financial system of the early 20th century was dominated by public and private capital:

The Russian financial system of the early 20th century was not in the best condition. First, the international crisis of 1900-1903 had a serious impact on it. Secondly, and the revolution of 1905-1907. actually emptied the Russian treasury. Thirdly, the constant appeal to foreign capital has led to an increase in public debt.

Reforms of S. Yu. Witte

The reforms of the Minister of the Interior S. Yu. Witte were an attempt stabilize the financial system. He carried out a whole range of measures aimed at improving the economy:

  • regulation of the tariff system;
  • reorganization of the taxation system;
  • state regulation of foreign and domestic trade (protectionism);
  • the revitalization of the State Bank and the monetary reform of 1897, aimed at strengthening the national currency;
  • fighting the budget deficit.

In general, the reforms were positive, but S. Yu. Witte was not allowed to complete them, blocking his agrarian program.

Features of economic development

Thus, the Russian economy of the early 20th century was characterized by (it was characterized by):

  • a combination of a developed industrial and financial system with a backward agrarian one;
  • the weakness of the bourgeoisie, which had just begun to take shape under conditions of social inequality;
  • high concentration of foreign capital with low domestic exports.

Briefly about the Russian economy at the beginning of the 20th century

The development of the Russian economy in the 20th century

Conclusion

On the one side Russian economy rapidly evolved and developed, on the other hand, autocracy, landlordism, remnants of serfdom and social inequality hampered modernization processes. But, in any case, during this period, the level of Russia's economic development has increased and its lagging behind the leading capitalist powers decreased significantly.

In the last decade of the XIX century. Russia's economic development was characterized by a powerful industrial boom. It was at this time that, along with the old industrial regions (Urals, Central, North-West), new ones were formed - the Southern (coal-metallurgical) and Baku (oil). In these areas, industry developed at a particularly rapid pace. Thanks to them, a new powerful fuel base is being created in the country. Heavy industry was also formed on its basis: the production of ferrous metals increased three times compared to the previous decade, which allowed Russia to almost completely abandon the import of metal. The volume of mechanical engineering increases three times. The industrial boom in Russia had a beneficial effect on the life of all strata of society. The English scientist P. Getrell figuratively remarked: "It is clear that on average in 1914 the tsar's subjects ate and dressed much better than their immediate predecessors."

However, despite these noticeable changes, Russia lagged behind the leading bourgeois powers in the sphere of industrial production. With the highest rates of development in the world, labor productivity remained low in Russia. In addition, Russia was poor in capital. Its foreign trade turnover was noticeably inferior to that of the leading powers. The Russian government faced the problem of attracting foreign capital with all its urgency. In 1895 S.Yu. Witte argued to the ministers and the emperor that "without the assistance of foreign capital, we are not in a position to use the natural wealth with which certain areas of our vast homeland are so generously endowed."

The empire, with its inexhaustible supply of raw materials and cheap labor, was extremely attractive to the Western European bourgeoisie. At the end of XIX - beginning of XX centuries. in the mining, metalworking and machine-building industries, foreign investments exceeded Russian ones.

Russian workers at that time remained the lowest paid in Europe and were easier than their counterparts in France or Germany to succumb to revolutionary agitation.

The Russian bourgeoisie found itself in great dependence on state power. At the end of XIX - beginning of XX centuries. special government bodies- "Conferences on Shipbuilding", "Congress on Direct Communications" and others, with the help of which the government, acting in close contact with representatives of large monopolies, regulated production. Through these bodies, state orders were distributed, benefits were provided, cash loans etc. The State Bank, which provided powerful financial support to those monopolistic associations in whose activities the government was interested, was also acquiring ever greater importance in the regulation of production at that time.

As a result, the big bourgeoisie develops an ambivalent attitude towards the monarchical system. On the one hand, the bourgeoisie, increasingly sensing its economic power, began to strive for political power and thus found itself in opposition to the emperor. On the other hand, the constant financial support of the bourgeoisie by the government and state orders made this opposition rather weak. And yet, the Russian bourgeoisie was no longer the "servant" of the aristocracy. More F. M. Dostoevsky in the 70s. XIX century, he noted that "the former framework of the former merchant is suddenly terribly moving apart in our time. A European speculator suddenly becomes related to them, unknown in Russia before, and a stock player ... A modern merchant no longer needs to get a "person" for dinner and give it balls; he is already related and fraternizing with a person on the stock exchange, in a joint-stock meeting ... he is now a person himself, a person himself.

More and more grandiose industrial enterprises began to appear in the new industrial regions, employing thousands of workers. This process is called the concentration of production. It took place in Russia in a short time and at a faster pace than in any other country, and opened the way for the formation of monopolies, i.e. such large enterprises, the owners of which have the opportunity to establish control over the market and dictate their terms in individual sectors of production, thereby ensuring maximum profits for themselves. To do this, they only had to agree among themselves on how much to produce and what price to set for it.

Monopolies appear in Russia in the 80s - 90s. 19th century One of the first monopolies, for example, was the association of sugar producers. And yet, such processes were most characteristic of heavy industries. The "Union of Carriage Works" incorporated almost all major enterprises of the country producing rolling stock for railways. In the oil industry, the "Union of Baku Kerosene Planters" and the "Union of Seven Firms" appeared, which almost monopolized the production and sale of oil. However, according to a modern researcher of the Russian economy at the beginning of the 20th century. V.Ya. Laverychev, "monopolistic unions, banking monopolies, the system of state-monopoly capitalism in pre-revolutionary Russia did not reach the degree of maturity that was characteristic of the leading capitalist countries."

In parallel with the concentration of industrial production in Russia, as well as throughout the world, there was a concentration of banking capital. In the course of a fierce struggle for dominance in this area, which cost the independence of the existence of many small provincial banks, by the beginning of the 20th century. the so-called "big five" stands out - a group of St. Petersburg banks, which accounted for almost half of all monetary resources.

90s of the XIX century. - the time of intensive railway construction. Along with the laying of new railway lines in industrial regions, the expansion of the railway network on the outskirts of the empire was becoming increasingly important during this period: in Belarus and the Baltic states, in the Russian North, in the Transcaucasus and Central Asia. In the 90s. 19th century the construction of the most grandiose Trans-Siberian Railway in the world with a length of 7 thousand miles begins.

Russia entered the 20th century with the second longest railway network (after the USA), and almost half of it was built in the 90s. previous century. The initiator of railway construction in the country was the government itself, which realized the need for railways for Russia. “During the reign of Emperor Alexander III,” wrote S.Yu. Witte, Minister of Finance and Communications of that time, “a firm idea was established about the state significance of railways ... a complete revolution took place in the railway business, both from a practical and theoretical point of view.”

Railway construction, which established uninterrupted transport links between different regions, greatly contributed to the industrial development of the country as a whole.