Historically, statistics arose from the needs of society in obtaining information about the state of production, markets for goods and services, labor, as well as from the need to analyze the data for further socioeconomic development. For a long time, statistics have been understood as the science of collecting, processing, and analyzing quantitative indicators on the dynamics of mass phenomena and processes, which is the most important tool for implementing state plans and tasks.

One of the classics of statistics, V. Pokrovsky wrote as early as 1874: “... Statistical figures are the best way to verify the correctness and appropriateness of measures used for public improvement. ... But for statistics to be of such importance, it is necessary to use its data with extreme caution and impartiality. ... The widest variety of opinions exists on almost all public issues, and each opinion tries to find support in statistical facts and figures. ... It is not the fault of statistics that every political party uses statistics for its own purposes, that statistics support the most unjust and absurd opinions”. [1]

In our time, this statement has not lost its relevance, because very often, using the same statistical indicators, politicians, economists, scientists to justify their point of view, give directly opposite results. But is there a clear understanding of statistics in modern society? What is the value of statistics? What is the statistical literacy of the population? Do people need to learn the language of numbers? In the proposed paper, the author sets out the view on these issues and invites you to join the discussion of the issues raised.

Purpose of the study. The aim of this work is to examine methodological approaches to the formation of gross domestic product on an annual and quarterly basis within the framework of the System of National Accounts, using the example of 189 countries. The work is based on a dynamic and structural analysis of statistical information of gross domestic product published on the official websites of statistical agencies and the International Monetary Fund.

Materials and methods. The information base of the study is the official statistical data of countries published on the website of the International Monetary Fund, as well as methodological provisions for the formation of gross domestic product. The research methodological base is represented by statistical methods of information analysis and empirical research.

Results. The analysis of data and methodological approaches to gross domestic product formation in different countries has been carried out, as a result of which the main problems of a number of countries regarding the accuracy and relevance of gross domestic product data have been identified. These problems are grouped into six key criteria based on practical macroeconomic approaches, in particular gross domestic product: updating of the base year, annual and quarterly gross domestic product data, timeliness of reporting gross domestic product data, method of compiling gross domestic product (production, expenditure, income), use of the international standard “System of national accounts, 2008”.

Conclusion. Despite a rather large volume of macroeconomic indicators, one of the main indicators is gross domestic product, the dynamics of which reflects the development of the economy. Therefore, reliable data on gross domestic product play a key role in the analysis of macroeconomic and financial policies, as well as in the analysis and accuracy of forecasting the development of the country’s economy. The study revealed that 50% of the countries surveyed had acceptable base years, meaning that the transition to the new base year did not exceed 10 years. Virtually all countries generate annual gross domestic product data, while quarterly estimates of gross domestic product form about 65% of countries. The timeliness of data dissemination also varies from country to country, and many do not publish date information. 72% surveyed countries provide annual gross domestic product data in a timely manner, while 55% surveyed countries provide quarterly gross domestic product data in a timely manner. The production method is the most common of the three methods of calculating gross domestic product (the production method, the method of using income and the generation of gross domestic product by source of income). Gross domestic product formation in accordance with the current version of the international standard “System of National Accounts, 2008” is applied in 52% of countries, and in most other countries the previous version of the international standard “System of National Accounts, 1993” is used.

The purpose of the research. The political and economic balance between the major world powers in the 1950s was disrupted by the rejection of the socialist model of the economy by a number of countries. For this reason, countries such as Russia and China have been withdrawn from geopolitical space for decades and have re-built their economies and foreign economic ties. The exit from the "shadow" of the economies of these powers in the 2000s led to the movement of the processes of changing the unipolar world order to a multipolar one. A clear catalyst for this process was the formation of the BRICS political and economic union, which brought together the largest developing countries of the world. The topic of positioning of five countries in the world space, as well as the identification of factors that have a favorable impact on their convergence, has become relevant, in this regard, the aim of the study is to assess the position of the BRICS countries in the world community, on the quantitative side, in an inextricable connection with the qualitative basis of socio-economic laws and patterns.

Materials and methods. Statistical methods such as tabular, graphical, generalization and correlation regression analysis were used to achieve this goal. Data sources were from the World Bank, the UN Statistical Committee and the BRICS national statistical services.

Results. The main results are: on the basis of a critical analysis of the theoretical literature and empirical studies, a methodology for conducting the study was developed, which includes the use of statistical tools; during the period 1990-2018, the position of the BRICS countries in geo-economic space strengthened, as evidenced by the growth of the total share of the Union's members in world GDP; China and India have made a significant leap in economic capacity-building as a result of policies to attract foreign investment and technology; GDP growth in the 2000s continued in China and India, while in Russia, Brazil and South Africa a slowdown was observed, which, according to the forecast, would lead to a further decline in the growth rate of these countries; the main factor that has a positive impact on the growth of the five economies is services, which is fully consistent with the global trend.

Conclusion. The results will be useful for researchers in macroeconomic dynamics and geo-economics, in particular the approaches used in the article; it is possible to apply to similar political and economic unions and associations. General conclusions can also be recommended to persons responsible for making state decisions in the field of integration of Russia into the world space, as well as specialists in sociology, social economics and political science.

This article, based on annual data from 1994 to 2018, considers trade and economic processes between Azerbaijan, Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan through the GDP integration indicators of Azerbaijan and foreign trade turnover with these countries.

The purpose of the research. The purpose of the study is to find cointegration relationships between the studied macroeconomic indicators and correct application of the vector model of error correction to describe the equilibrium relationship between the considered data of intercountry interaction and to develop sound economically informative recommendations in the sphere of intercountry trade and economic interaction.

Materials and methodology. Official statistics of the State Statistics Committee of Azerbaijan, scientific works of scientists-economists on the inter-country integration processes in the post-soviet region are used. Statistical methods of information processing are applied in relation to the empirical analysis of non-stationary time series of the studied statistical data, and correctly tested modern econometric methods and all the necessary econometric testing procedures are used to build co-integration relations and the vector model of error correction taking into account the effects of external shocks. All the calculations are made in Microsoft Excel and Eviews 8 application software packages.

Results. The properties of applying the econometric methodology of studying the statistical relationship between multidimensional nonstationary time series are investigated. For this data, the authors' approach is to use the co-integration tool and the mechanism of vector error correction, which are practically not applicable by economists in Azerbaijan to date. A new specification of the model with respect to the logarithms of the source variables is defined. Based on the minimization of the mean square error, estimates of the model parameters are found. The Granger connection causality is investigated. The Johansen tests are implemented to find the cointegration area, after which the vector error correction model is built, which describes the long-term equilibrium relationship between the studied indicators and the path of returning to the equilibrium trajectory if it deviates from it. When modeling, we used all the necessary statistical procedures required to identify and evaluate the parameters of the model and verify its adequacy and the accuracy of short-term and long-term forecast values by applying Microsoft Excel and Eviews 8 tools.

Conclusion. As a result of the study, econometrically sound recommendations are developed, which allow to conduct dynamic analyzes for effective state regulation of export-import operations between the four countries in order to balance the trade and improve the relevant inclusive parameters of the long-term sustainable development of these states.

Purpose of research. The aim of the study is to conduct statistical research and assess the level of digitalization of the economy of the European Union and some non-EU countries. The focus is on assessing the level, dynamics and directions of information and communication technologies development in the European economy on the example of the international index of digital economy and society (I-DESI). The strongest and weakest countries were identified, and the impact of components (sub-indexes) of the I-DESI index on GDP was studied.

Materials and methods. For this study, the digital economy and society index (DESI – Digital Economy and Society Index), which is a composite measure that studies the digital indicators of Europe, developed by DG CONNECT (the European Commission) to provide an evidence-based contribution to the assessment of digital development in the EU as a whole, is considered as an assessment of the level of digitalization. Based on this index, the international digital economy and society index (I-DESI) was developed in 2018, which reflects and expands the EU-28 digital economy and society index. Based on the sub-indexes of this index, a multidimensional classification of European countries was carried out. The main components method identifies the main factors that were used to identify their impact on the level of GDP in various clusters. The Statistica package is used for information processing and analysis.

Results. This study examined the values of sub-indexes of the I-DESI index in five dimensions: communication, digital skills, citizens' use of the Internet, integration of business technologies, and digital public services. According to the hierarchical classification based on these sub-indexes, 2 groups of countries were identified. Using the k-means method, the features of each cluster are identified. Comparisons of cluster analysis results by sub-indexes were made based on data from 2016 and 2013. Using the main components method, five main factors were identified out of twenty indicators characterizing the I-DESI index and their influence on the level of GDP in various clusters was revealed. The analysis of twenty indicators of the I-DESI 2018 index, applied in the method of main components, by the directions of the index itself, the economy in the context of GDP and the social sphere (life of society) through the HDI (human development index) in various clusters was also carried out.

Conclusion. According to the research, two groups of countries were identified by the level of digitalization. The first group in 2016 included twenty two countries with high indicators of digital development of the economy and society. All the countries of the first cluster are developed countries that have a significant share of services in their economy, as well as investments in high-tech products. The second cluster is represented by twenty three countries. This cluster is mainly represented by developing countries, which still have a large share of production in GDP. The level of GDP in the first cluster countries with a high I-DESI index was mainly influenced by factors that characterize fixed broadband and digital public services. Two groups of factors also influenced the GDP level of the second cluster countries. One group of factors combined variables that characterize new technologies in business, the other group – the use of the Internet by the population. The study of the development of the digital economy has allowed us to conclude that in general, the trend of rapid spread of modern technologies is developing around the world. This suggests that society in the context of the state and the individual needs to be mobile and ready to adopt new technologies in advance.

Purpose of the study. Information and communication technologies are becoming a powerful tool for the development of electronic business. Today, the leaders in the global economic and political space are precisely those countries that have learned to determine the vector of development of information technologies and use new opportunities for their application. The development of innovative digital technologies in Russia and in the world is widely discussed in the framework of various discussion platforms. In particular, at the International Forum “The Digital Future of the Global Economy” (January 31, 2020 Almaty), digitalization of trade processes between the EAEU membercountries became one of the main topics. The annual Tech Week conference (Moscow) is becoming a traditional place for discussing the implementation of innovative technologies in business, as well as for the exchange of experience of leading Russian and world corporations in the field of electronic business. In this regard, there is a need for a comprehensive statistical assessment of the development level of electronic business of the territory.

Materials and methods. The research was based on the data of the Federal State Statistics Service for 2018 for the regions of the Volga federal district, and the results of monitoring the development of the information society in the Russian Federation. As a tool for assessing the degree of digitalization of business in the regions of the Volga federal district, the graphic polygon (radar) method is used.

Results. The article provides a retrospective analysis of the stages of development of electronic business in Russia. Among the characteristic features of the modern stage of its development are the mass introduction of Internet technologies and the transformation of traditional business methods. The introduction of advanced information and communication technologies contributes to greater involvement of the business sector in electronic business. In terms of the level of development of information and communication technologies (ICT Development Index), Russia ranks 45th among the countries of the world. For the period 2010 - 2018 the development of electronic business in Russia has a positive trend. According to the results of 2018, the volume of the Russian e-commerce market amounted to 1280 billion rubles, or 4.1% of the total trade turnover. According to forecast estimates, by 2023 the volume of Russian e-commerce market will grow to 8.5% of the total turnover and amount to 2780 billion rubles. An integrated assessment of the development level of electronic business was carried out according to sixteen local criteria. As a result of calculating the private and local ranks of the values of the relevant criteria, fourteen polygons of the level of development of electronic business were constructed by the number of regions of the Volga federal district. The results obtained allow us to state the existence of a high degree of heterogeneity of the regions of the Volga federal district according to the integral indicator under study. Among the leading regions in terms of electronic business development are the Republic of Tatarstan, Perm krai and Nizhny Novgorod region. Outsider regions – the Mari El Republic, the Republic of Mordovia, and the Kirov region – are characterized by a low percentage of organizations that used the capabilities of the Intranet and Extranet, the absence of special software for managing sales of goods (works, services), and limited use of software, in particular ERP, CRM and SCM systems.

Conclusion. The widespread use of information and communication technologies entails the expansion of opportunities and improving the quality of coordination of business activities. We should remember that if modern business cannot quickly adapt to the new requirements of the digital economy, then it risks becoming uncompetitive. The results of the study revealed a differentiation in the development of electronic business in the regions of the Volga federal district. A similar situation is observed in most constituent entities of the Russian Federation and is due in many respects to specific reasons for each region. The timely fulfillment of the goals and objectives of digital transformations in the Russian Federation reflected in the Digital Economy of the Russian Federation Program and other regulatory documents will help to smooth out the existing imbalances.

The purpose of the study is to examine the role of social programs in the structure of expenditures of the consolidated budgets of the Russian Federation and the Volgograd region, to identify the main directions for improving the content of targeted programs aimed at implementing specific measures in the field of social policy.

Materials and methods: the methodology includes structural and statistical analysis, methods of economic forecasting and modeling. The analysis uses official statistical data, as well as re-ports on the performance of the consolidated budgets of the Russian Federation and the Volgograd region in the period 2014-2018. The paper contains an analysis of both scientific periodicals and non-periodical publications devoted to the topic of this study.

Results: the paper discusses the features of spending budget funds for the implementation of social programs at both the federal and regional levels, reflects the model of the impact of the volume of budget financing of the social sphere on the state of the regional economy. In the course of the work, recommendations were developed to improve the mechanism for allocating financial resources, including elements of public-private partnership, as well as to stimulate the development of socially-oriented non-profit organizations that can become effective intermediaries between government agencies and the population in the implementation of social policy measures. The study revealed an upward trend in the volume of budget funds allocated for the implementation of activities within the framework of social environment development programs. At the same time, it was noted that this growth is partially offset by the dynamics of inflation, which indicates the need to optimize expenditure items taking into account data on changes in the consumer price index and the level of real incomes of citizens.

Conclusion: centralizing the management of socio-economic development processes seems to be the most rational course of action in an unstable economic system. Improving the quality of life of the population of the regions occurs in the conditions of transformation of economic systems, during which the regional economy joins allRussian course. In the course of the work, the need to improve the effectiveness of the implemented social policy was justified, which becomes especially necessary in the conditions of increasing rates of population outflow from the Volgograd region. The developed social sphere of the region makes it possible to form effective civil society institutions, in which the population independently participates in the process of improving the social environment. To ensure control over timely and complete budget execution, state audit methods can be used (we are talking about regional and municipal control and accounting bodies), including strategic audit, which allows proactive control of the effectiveness of upcoming events. The results of this study can be used to track the dynamics of budget spending in the implementation of socially-oriented programs, as well as to determine the most promising areas of budget financing of the social environment.

Purpose of the study. The production sphere of the enterprise is a dynamic system of cash, material and information flows, in the framework of which the final product is formed, distributed between investments in production capital and own consumption. The task of choosing the optimal proportions of the distribution of the final product is relevant and practically significant for corporations in developing economies. The purpose of this work is, using mathematical modeling, to identify strategy for the optimal development of commercial enterprise, based on the volume of investment in factors of production and consumption norms and the accumulation profit of the enterprise.

Materials and methods. To obtain scientific results, general scientific and specific research methods were used: analysis, synthesis, comparison, system analysis, parametric analysis, economic, mathematical and statistical research methods. The theoretical basis of the study is the fundamental work and publications of Russian and foreign scientists in the field of research of optimal management of the economic system of the enterprise. The authors proposed a methodological approach that distinguishes their research from others – a mathematical model of the balanced development of the economy of an economic entity is presented, where production capital, labor resources and intellectual capital are considered as factors of socio-economic development. The information base of the study is the data of the financial and accounting statements of the Public Joint Stock Company Rosneft Oil Company for the period 2006-2018.

Results. The factors of development of the enterprise economy are highlighted, among which, in addition to the traditional approach, which includes capital and labor, intellectual capital is introduced into the main production factor. As a valuation of the intellectual capital of the enterprise, the costly method is used. Based on the cycle of reproduction of the enterprise’s activity, a balance equation of the enterprise’s activity model has been formed taking into account capital investments in production factors and consumption and profit accumulation rates. The criterion functional in the optimal management problem is the discounted profit of the enterprise. As a control, a function was selected that characterizes the share of investment in fixed assets, and as a state of the system, the ratio of the value of fixed assets to intellectual capital. The mathematical model of optimal development is applied to the economic system of the enterprise of PJSC NK “Rosneft”.

Conclusion. Modeling the dynamics of production capital, labor resources and intellectual capital of PJSC NK “Rosneft” and the results of solving their optimal management problem show that to keep a production enterprise on a balanced growth path, 55% of net profit will be spent on developing the intellectual capital of the enterprise, 35% of net profit – to improve the state of production capital of Rosneft. Given the optimal management in the future for 2019-2022. projected annual revenue growth rate of 19.9%, fixed assets – 16.2% and annual net profit of the company –9.7%.

Purpose of research. The actuality of the problem of the integrated (complex) assessment of investment attractiveness of large Russian companies is due to the need of increasing production volumes and improves processing technologies of the largest sectors of the Russian economy, as well as the requirements of the accelerated growth of high-tech exports. The purpose of this study is to develop rating of investment attractiveness of companies using minimax approach and hierarchical data analysis. Decision about share structure of investment distribution contributes to the implementation of important knowledge-intensive projects for the development of major industry companies. Integral rating of companies plays a leading role in making investment decisions. Research hypothesis of the minimax approach application and hierarchical data analysis will allow developing an intelligent computerized system that will perform real-time calculations and make recommendations on share distribution of investments of the largest Russian companies using a hierarchical rating procedure and minimax approach.

Materials and methods. Currently, methodological tools for rating of investment attractiveness of the largest Russian companies are at initial stage of development, although the relevance of such studies in world practice has reached the highest level, thanks to leading rating agencies that have their own methodology and justified methodology for rating companies. Until middle of 2017 when developing investment strategies for the development of Russian industry giants, the opinions of the international rating agencies of “big three”: Standard & Poor's, Fitch Ratings, Moody's and experts of Forbes magazine were taken into account. However, due to reduction in the activity of foreign expertise in Russia, it became necessary to develop and implement its own rating methodology for assessing the investment attractiveness of companies. Current rating approach (accredited Agency Expert RA), as well as young and promising rating agencies need new and mathematically sound approach to compile rating, which optimizes investment process for the most important high-tech projects by priority indicators and industry sign companies. Author's methodology is based at analysis of statistical indicators of companies in the most important sectors of economy. The important feature of the developed method is using author's mathematical apparatus, including a hierarchical analysis of the ranked indicators of financial-economic activity of companies according to their priority and application of minimax approach to obtain rating of companies based at industry characteristics.

Results. Method developed in the paper is based at logical rules of grouping companies, allows obtaining rating of companies and rating of leading Russian industries, which companies were considered in data analysis. By using obtained ratings and minimax approach, the rating of investment attractiveness of the companies is made (taking into account industry affiliation). Proposed method has scientific novelty, due to hierarchical procedure of ranking indicators and minimax problem. More that author’s method allows obtaining rating assessment of investment attractiveness of companies, taking into account industry characteristic. In this paper, computational experiments were performed, which used indicators on volume of output and profit of the largest (by volume of output) companies in Russia. Computational experiments have shown the leading role of oil and gas and banking companies in Russian economy.

Conclusion. The practical use of the developed method of integral ranking of companies allows optimizing process of allocation the investment resources and contributes to expansion of production of high-tech products produced by leading companies of the most important sectors of Russian economy. Proposed method is advisable for using in investment strategies for the development of high-tech projects. Efficiency of the developed rating of Russian companies has been demonstrated at practice of assessing the largest Russian companies; results are complemented, expanded and enriched by existing research of specialists and leading rating agencies. The author recommends using presented tools for optimization the investment resources for development of the most important industry companies in Russia.