Functioning and development of local consumer markets: theoretical, methodological and applied aspects

In the article, the territorial consumer markets on the basis of the key characteristics’ analysis are considered: level of decentralization, subsidiarity to consumers of the certain territory, depending on the local conditions and industry specializations. A methodical approach to the classification of the territorial consumer markets (on the example of the municipal level markets), including steps of the use of classification signs revealing their features, factors and functionality are offered. Structural distortions between branch orientation of the municipality and the consumer market structure are revealed. That has allowed to allocate three types of «problems» in development of municipalities: the insufficient providing with nonfood goods of the territorial subdivisions having industrial specialization; low consumption of food products of municipalities with agricultural specialization; low retail trade turnover at the high level of paid services and areas of public food in territorial subdivisions with industrial specialization. Recommendations on the regulation of the consumer markets of the «problematic» municipalities of Chelyabinsk region on the basis of problem-targeted approach are submitted; its purposes and actions are specified depending on economic disproportions of the certain municipality.