Central Bank prepares end-of-year cut PRO Members Public
Next week the Central Bank will take its final interest rate decision of the year, likely cutting borrowing costs by at least 50 basis points, to 16%, amid slowing inflation. * The last meeting of the year is scheduled for Dec. 19. At the previous meeting on Oct. 24, the board
Final battle for Russia’s frozen billions PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexander Kolyandr and Alexandra Prokopenko and brought to you by The Bell. This week we look at the battle over whether the EU will channel Russia’s frozen assets to Ukraine — and how Moscow is already responding. Edited
What might Putin bring back from India? PRO Members Public
Vladimir Putin went to India for his first visit since 2021. India is one of Russia’s key political and economic partners, but pressure from Western sanctions is hitting both trade and diplomatic relations. Putin’s visit is intended to revive them. * The United States is trying to knock India
EU puts Russia on financial blacklist PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexander Kolyandr and Alexandra Prokopenko and brought to you by The Bell. This week we analyze the EU’s decision to put Russia on its financial blacklist, and what Putin hopes to bring back from his trip to
A strange rise in productivity PRO Members Public
Amid a general slowdown in industrial output, especially manufacturing (which we discussed last week), Russia’s federal statistics agency Rosstat unexpectedly reported a sharp rise in production and manufacturing, including military-related industries, in October. A slight increase in corporate lending does not seem to explain the surge. * According to Rosstat,
Wartime debts drag Russian businesses down PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexander Kolyandr and Alexandra Prokopenko and and brought to you by The Bell. This week we look at how the Kremlin may have the upper hand on the battlefield, but at home its top companies are struggling with
Russia starts selling gold reserves PRO Members Public
The Central Bank began its first sales of physical gold from its reserves as part of the finance ministry’s efforts to fund the budget deficit. With gold at record high levels, this is more lucrative than selling off Russia’s new reserve currency, the Chinese yuan. * Gold sales take
Russia’s economic slowdown bites harder PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexandra Prokopenko and Alexander Kolyandr and brought to you by The Bell. This week, we analyze how Russia’s economic slowdown is hitting harder, with worse still on the horizon, and look at Russia selling off its gold
New sanction worries PRO Members Public
Lukoil’s difficulty in disposing of its foreign assets has captured global headlines, but it is far from the only sign that sanctions are causing more and more problems in the Russian economy. The issues are evident in several other places as well. * Lukoil asked the US Treasury Department to
Is Russia facing a debt crisis? PRO Members Public
Hello! Welcome to your weekly guide to the Russian economy, written by Alexander Kolyandr and Alexandra Prokopenko and brought to you by The Bell. This week we detail growing concerns about the health of the financial sector, and look at how the cumulative impact of sanctions is weighing on many
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The Bell was founded in 2017 by journalists Elizaveta Osetinskaya, Irina Malkova and Peter Mironenko as a news outlet independent from the Russian authorities, after its founders have been sacked as top editors at the largest Russian news website RBC because of pressure from the Kremlin.
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