The Russian economy is in crisis: in 2015 GDP declined 3.5 percent, inflation reached 12 percent, and real income has fallen for the first time in 15 years. The immediate cause of Russia’s economic turmoil is a steep decline in oil prices, and dysfunction in the government's management of the current downturn. However, Russia’s economic problems are more systemic than the recent decline in commodity prices—its economy has been stagnant since 2008. Russian economist Konstantin Sonin argued that without substantive change, there would be little hope for sustainable economic growth in Russia for the foreseeable future.