March 24, 2022 Socio-Economic Situation in Russia. Sanctions in Action

RF

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Lavrov admitted that no one in Russia predicted that the West would block the reserves of the Central Bank.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has reported a problem with the financing of Russian embassies abroad, and a dialogue has been launched with the authorities of the respective countries.

Spokesman Peskov has said that the Russian Defense Ministry will report its losses during the war in Ukraine when it decides it necessary.

Former head of the Russian Presidential Administration Anatoly Chubais resigned voluntarily from the post of the Russian President’s Special Envoy for Sustainable Development and left Russia.

Foreign lessors have requested the return of more than 500 aircrafts of Russian airlines, their purchase will cost $ 20 billion, - said at a meeting of the Federation Council, Russian Transport Minister Vitaly Savelyev.

The Russian Prosecutor's Office has issued a warning to companies with foreign management operating in the Moscow region - IKEA and OBI, as well as manufacturers Michelin, Grundfos and JCB to prevent violations of the rights of Russian employees.

Russian export-oriented companies are considering the possibility of relocating production to Kazakhstan, - said the head of the foreign office of the Kazakh state export insurance company KazakhExport Alexandr Tsygankov.

The head of Primorye Oleg Kozhemyako appealed to the government to support Russia’s largest producer of canned fish DK “Dobroflot” because of the threat of the company’s shutting down.

 The cost of Russian citizens’ to buy cosmetics in online shps for the month increased by more than a third. The average check increased from 3,550 rubles up to 4,983 rubles, - reports the payment service for online shops CloudPayments. Demand for cosmetics is due to the desire of citizens to purchase the necessary cosmetics before the prices go up and global brands leave the Russian market.

The supply of such imported children's antipyretic drugs as “Eferalgan”, “Panadol”, “Nurofen for children” has significantly decreased in Moscow pharmacies and marketplaces.

In many Russian clothing and footwear shops, prices have increased several times, in particular for old collections. At the same time, cosmetics, feminine hygiene products and lenses have become significantly more expensive. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) has linked rising prices to high demand for imported goods.

In Melon Fashion Group (brands Zarina, Befree, Love Republic, Sela) prices have increased by 80%.

In the network of shoe shops “Rendezvous” prices have doubled within one and a half weeks – by an average of 3-8 thousand rubles. The rise in prices is due to the cessation of supply of footwear from Europe, which accounted for 90% of the range of the network.

Russian companies fear cuts in supplies due to Western sanctions imposed in response to Russia's aggression against Ukraine. Many foreign companies have stopped working en masse in Russia and refused to invest in the RF. Those companies that remain in the country are revising the prices of their products, in particular the large manufacturer of household chemicals and hygiene products P&G (Ariel, Fairy, Pampers, Gillette) has decided to increase selling prices by an average of 40%.

Due to the statements of American and European companies about full or partial withdrawal from the Russian advertising market, it may lose 50% or more of its profits from year to year.

This forecast was provided by the Russian advertising holding NMI Group, which brings together MultiTEC, PPA, NM Science and ranks seventh in the ranking of the largest media agencies and holdings Sostav and the Association of Communication Agencies of Russia (AKAR).

Europe and the World

The United States supports Russia's exclusion from the G20, but will consult with partner countries on the issue, said Jake Sullivan, the US President's National Security Adviser. The day before, Poland invited the US authorities to study the issue of excluding Russia from the G20 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The Polish Internal Security Agency has compiled a list of 45 Russian diplomats suspected of espionage. According to the press secretary of the Minister-Coordinator of the special services, the agency insists on their expulsion from the country.

Earlier, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia expelled ten Russian diplomats for activities “contradicting their diplomatic status” and “spreading propaganda”. Bulgaria and Slovakia have also announced the expulsion of Russian diplomats.

The Russian embassy in Warsaw will lose almost three quarters of its diplomatic staff, said Russian Ambassador to Poland Sergei Andreev. At the same time, Poland has stated that it will not agree to the arrival of new workers to replace those expelled.

Russia will cease to be a member of the European Convention on Human Rights from September 16, 2022, the ECtHR said in a statement.

US senators are working with the Treasury to block Russia's gold reserves by about 132 billion US dollars.

The European Organization for Satellite Meteorology (EUMETSAT) has suspended cooperation with Russia.

The French financial group Credit Agricole has announced the cessation of operations in Russia.

The Danish company Copenhagen Offshore Partners has refused to lease one of the Kuril islands of Shumshu to produce “green” hydrogen.

Vietnam Airlines will suspend flights to Russia from March 25. The decision was made to clarify the procedures, rules and risks associated with the procedure of insurance of vehicles flying to Russia after the imposition of international sanctions.

Japanese electronics maker Sharp has said it is suspending shipments to Russia.

Nestle will still stop selling goods such as Nesquik and KitKat in Russia.

The American streaming service Netflix has removed its program from the App Store and Google Play in Russia.

One of the world's largest international news and financial information agencies, Reuters, has removed Russian TARS content from its news platform.

The top 6 ex-international advertising groups will “shrink even more, as they mostly work with Western companies”, the NMI Group predicts: “Most likely, this figure will be 60-90% per year, depending on the client portfolio”.

The international group Dentsu also presented its forecast: it expects to fall by 40-60% in April-May compared to the same period last year.

Earlier, all major communications groups announced their withdrawal from their Russian businesses. This was done by the American Omnicom Group (its subsidiary OMD OM Group operates in Russia), the international group headquartered in Tokyo Dentsu (Dentsu Russia), the French communications group Publicis Groupe (Publicis Media Russia), the advertising holding WPP (owned a stake in Group M ), IPG Creative and Havas (ADV Group).

The International Labor Organization has announced the cessation of cooperation with Russia.

French authorities have confiscated two yachts belonging to Russian businessman Alexei Kuzmichev, one of Alfa Group's main shareholders - a $ 22 million 17-meter Little Bear and a € 70 million 26-meter Big Bear.

Well-known writer Stephen King has stopped working with Russian publishers on all new contracts.

The International Swimming Federation (FINA) has suspended the national teams of Russia and Belarus from participating in the World Aquatics Championships to be held in Budapest from June 18 to July 3.