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Moscow’s not calling PRO Members Public
Moscow is facing a communications collapse: mobile internet in the capital has been limping through serious outages all week, and whole districts in the city center are without connection. The authorities deny any involvement, but operators say that networks are being restricted on orders from above. Moscow has never experienced
No money for metal PRO Members Public
The government has twice over the last month rejected calls for financial support from big businesses. First, leading developer Samolet was denied help, and now the entire ferrous metals sector is also being turned away. * First Deputy PM Denis Manturov this week held a meeting on whether to support the
Russia prepares Telegram endgame PRO Members Public
Russia’s authorities have shifted from slowing Telegram to shutting it down completely. At the same time they have launched a criminal case against founder Pavel Durov on allegations of aiding terrorism. Two sources on the telecoms market told The Bell that Russia’s authorities are preparing to shut down
GDP data — what it reveals, what it conceals PRO Members Public
Russia’s economy grew by 1% in 2025, the Rosstat federal statistics agency reported this week. At the same time, it revised up its figures for previous years, increasing its estimate for growth in 2024 to 4.9% and 2023 to 4.1%. After those numbers, an annual expansion of
Top construction firm asks state for help PRO Members Public
Russia’s construction sector has become the first victim of ongoing high interest rates. Samolet, the country’s biggest construction firm, has appealed to the government for cheap credit to help it out of its tough financial situation. * Samolet, the largest developer in terms of square footage under development (4.
All eyes on inflation again PRO Members Public
Prices have already risen by almost 2% since the start of the year. Although data shows the pace of inflation on a weekly basis has slowed from the very high rate of 1.2% to 0.19% (Jan. 20-26), the economic authorities are still on high alert. * Prices are rising
Starting the year in the red PRO Members Public
Russia kicks off the year with a significant budget deficit, Deputy Finance Minister Vladimir Kolychev has warned. Weak oil-and-gas revenues as well as start-of-year advance payments are putting pressure on Moscow’s coffers from the off. But this year’s problems seem more intense than usual. * Oil remains cheap and
No insulation from nationalization PRO Members Public
Vladimir Putin has signed a decree seizing another asset from another foreign owner. The latest victim of the Russian authorities was Denmark’s Rockwool, which owns four enterprises producing heat and sound insulation materials. The Bell discovered the assets were handed to the management of a division of state defense
Foreign banks in Russia after four years of the war PRO Members Public
After the invasion of Ukraine and the sanctions shock of 2022, foreign banks massively reduced or completely halted their operations in Russia. The vacant market niches were quickly occupied by Russian players, but a significant number of foreign subsidiaries continue to do business in Russia, albeit in a very different
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
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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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