In a market economy, services are the same product as the values created in production and in the field of material values. The market of services in Russia (tangible and intangible) today provides half of GDP, if you compare this indicator with other developed countries, it turns out that Russia has not yet reached a sufficiently high level. As well as for consumer goods, here the demand entirely depends on material well-being, growth in cash incomes, as well as on the level of culture of the country's population.
The service market in Russia is now at the formation stage. The structure of paid services to the population is still distinguished by the predominance of three types - housing and communal, household and transport-passenger. Their share is 3/5 of the total. If you compare with Japan, then 4/5 of all services are allocated to health care, education and leisure activities.
The market of tourist services in our country has not yet received the proper level of development, in addition, spheres such as sports and cultural institutions, catering, insurance, legal and others are still lagging behind. In the regions of the country, one can notice a significant difference in the level of development of this sphere. In cities such as Moscow and St. Petersburg, the largest number of consumer services and goods are sold per inhabitant. And in their diversity and quantity, both of these regions stand out significantly from the rest. At the moment, the leader in providing banking services is Moscow. Of course, it is important to understand that the territorial organization of such a market is significantly affected by the geographical location, the availability of infrastructure facilities, urban development features, the cost of land, the availability of non-residential premises, and a number of other factors. It is also important to take into account their targeting and diversity.
It is customary to distinguish between everyday demand services, that is, those that are daily accessed by the population living in this territory. There are services of periodic demand: banking, tailoring and repair of shoes and clothes, paid services for doctors, services of travel agencies, sports facilities and others. A separate group of rarely consumed is allocated, which is aimed at a limited part of the population, for example, construction and repair of housing, insurance services, lawyers, hotel services and others. Their geographic network is more sparse.
The service market in Russia is still noticeably lagging behind the Western countries in its variety and level of technical equipment. That is why it is necessary to take the global market for services as an example, which will allow us to more effectively develop the necessary industries. New types and forms of service appeared due to the introduction of electronics. Computer technology is successfully used in banking and consulting services, leisure activities and other types of public services.
The market of services in Russia also provides a special type of service called recreation - that is, an activity whose goal is to improve the health of citizens and satisfy their spiritual, cultural and emotional needs. At the same time, thanks to recreation, it is possible to improve, ennoble cultural, historical and natural landscapes, which allows creating a favorable environment for people to live. Recreation is quite capable of becoming a highly profitable sphere, bringing considerable amounts to the budget of the regions and the whole country. Most of the recreational institutions are located in the European part of the country, and the regions of Siberia, the North and the Far East are experiencing a severe deficit in institutions of this kind, but this is all fixable.