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☆ As cracks emerge in Russia, US plots fresh sanctions to crank up pressure on Moscow
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN Business —Washington plans to keep piling pressure on Russia through additional sanctions in a bid to force hard choices in Moscow, a senior US official tells CNN. The preparations of further economic punishments come as cracks emerge in Russia’s economy and society because of the war in Ukraine and sanctions from the West. The scramble in Russia to shore up the crumbling ruble shows the pressure on Moscow is working, the senior US official told CNN. The United States has steadily imposed sanctions on Russia and the US official said Washington plans to continue doing so in a bid to ramp up pressure. Former CIA director David Petraeus argues now is the time for the United States to crank up the pressure on Russia.

Persons: . Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Putin, David Petraeus, “, ” Petraeus, Petraeus, ”, Ed Mills, Raymond James, Mills, Biden Organizations: New York CNN Business —, CNN, ., US, United, Washington, CIA, KKR Global Institute Locations: New York CNN Business — Washington, Russia, Moscow, Ukraine, United States, South Africa, Washington, United

Here are some details of the impact:* DEATHThe war has caused death on a level not seen in Europe since World War Two. The war has left nearly 500,000 troops either dead or injured, according to the New York Times. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Sept. 21 that 5,937 Russian soldiers had been killed since the start of the war. When added to Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, Russia now controls about 17.5% of Ukraine, an area of about 41,000 square miles (106,000 square km). Shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, international oil prices spiked to their highest levels since the records of 2008.

Persons: Chasiv Yar, Violeta Santos Moura, Sergei Shoigu, Julie Kozack, William Burns, Putin, Guy Faulconbridge, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: REUTERS, United Nations, Human Rights, New York Times, Russian, Reuters, Belfer, Harvard Kennedy School, International Monetary Fund, CIA, European Union, Kiel Institute, Thomson Locations: Chasiv, Ukraine, Donetsk, Europe, United States, Ukraine's, Russia, Crimea, Russian, UNHCR, UKRAINE Russia, Massachusetts , New Hampshire, Connecticut, wastelands, RUSSIA, Moscow, China, Saudi Arabia, Britain, Germany, Japan

☆ 'People are stupid': Strategist sees big downside as stocks ignore global crises — and names what to own
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Despite ongoing economic crises around the world, global stock markets have remained resilient so far this year. David Roche, president and global strategist at Independent Strategy , said equity markets were still relatively buoyant "because people are stupid" and overly complacent. They are related," Roche told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Thursday. The strategist suggested owning 30-year U.S. Treasurys , which were trading with a yield of 4.35% Friday. Earlier this month, billionaire investor Bill Ackman said he was betting against 30-year U.S. Treasurys in "a world with persistent 3% inflation."

Persons: David Roche, Roche, CNBC's, Vladimir Putin's, " Roche, I'm, Bill Ackman Organizations: Independent, Equity, JPMorgan, America, Pershing, Capital Management Locations: China, Russia, Beijing, Wall Street, China's, Moscow, Russian, West

☆ The resilience of Russia's stock market and its economy is a complete mirage masking deeper pain, Yale researchers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Jennifer Sor | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The functioning of Russia's stock market is an illusion, two Yale researchers told Insider. That apparently stellar performance of the Russian stock market this year is ultimately an illusion meant to mask deepening pain in the country's economy. It's a move that was intended to prop up Russia's stock market, the researchers said. "The Russian stock market performance is very misleading, It is a Roach Motel of assets," Sonnenfeld told Insider. Other experts have warned of more pain for Russia's economy as its costly war in Ukraine drags on.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Steven Tian, Ukraine haven't, that's, Tian, Sonnenfeld, Putin Organizations: Yale, Investments, Service, Yale School of Management, Putin, Levada Locations: Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Baltic, Russian, Armenia, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan

☆ The Kremlin's top brass are trying to pass the buck over the ruble's collapse. This rare public infighting shows just how precarious Russia's wartime economy is.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Kremlin's top brass are trying to pass the buck over the ruble's collapse. Russia's central bank governor, Elvira Nabiullina, said the weak ruble is due to changing trade flows. "A weak ruble complicates the economy's structural transformation and negatively influences real household earnings. "Blaming the central bank is like a drunkard's search — looking for the guilty where the light is," she said, the Financial Times reported earlier this week. The Kremlin, Russia's central bank, and Capital Economics did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Insider.

Persons: Putin's, Elvira Nabiullina, Maxim Oreshkin, Vladimir Putin's, Oreshkin, Nabiullina —, —, Liam Peach, Putin, Max Seddon, you've Organizations: Service, TASS, Financial Times, Capital Economics Locations: Wall, Silicon, Russian, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Surgut

☆ Russia's inflation spike sets Kremlin and central bank on collision course
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (L) and Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina Alexei Nikolsky\TASS via Getty ImagesRussia's rising inflation and plunging currency have spotlighted an emerging discord between the Kremlin and the country's central bank. Analysts suggested the government's direct strong-arming of the central bank into monetary policy action was a sign of the problems faced by the country's economy. In other words, the Russian currency has entered a vicious circle that it will struggle to escape from." This is because the negative factors behind the weakening currency are largely outside the control of the Central Bank of Russia." She added that blaming the central bank has therefore become an "easy tactic" for the Kremlin in the absence of any tangible options through which to improve the situation.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina Alexei Nikolsky, Vladimir Putin's, Maxim Oreshkin, Anatoly Aksakov, Agathe Demarais, Demarais, Stephanie Kennedy, Julius Baer, Kennedy Organizations: Russian Central Bank Governor, Getty, Kremlin, Central Bank of Russia, Bank, Bank of Russia, Financial, Bank of, Economist Intelligence Unit, CNBC, CBR, U.S . Locations: Russia, Bank of Russia, Ukraine

☆ Russia's ruble spikes as Putin and officials mull ways to prop up the currency after it dropped below a penny this week
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia's ruble jumped 5% against the dollar on Wednesday as the Kremlin mulls capital controls. President Vladimir Putin reportedly held talks with officials on ways to prop up the ruble. The ruble crashed Monday, and on Tuesday Russia's central bank raised its benchmark rate to 12% from 8.5%. Sources told the Financial Times that Putin was set to hear proposals Wednesday from the finance ministry that include forcing exporters to sell up to 80% of their foreign currency revenue, capping currency swaps, and limiting how much foreign currency exporters can move out of Russia. The Kremlin then turned to a host of emergency capital controls as well as sharp rate hikes to stabilize the ruble.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin Organizations: Kremlin, Service, Financial Times, Bloomberg Locations: Wall, Silicon, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow

☆ Russia's rouble rises ahead of central bank extraordinary meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Russia's central bank will hold an extraordinary meeting at on Tuesday to discuss the level of its key interest rate, currently at 8.5%. A decision will be published at 10:30 Moscow time (0730 GMT), the central bank said. The central bank's most recent emergency hike came in late February 2022 with a rate raise to 20% in the immediate fallout of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. After that, the bank steadily lowered the cost of borrowing before quickening inflation forced a 100-basis-point hike to 8.5% last month. "The central bank has all the tools to normalise the situation in the near future," President Vladimir Putin's economic adviser Maxim Oreshkin said on Monday.

Persons: Shamil Zhumatov, Rouble, Vladimir Putin's, Maxim Oreshkin, Putin, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: REUTERS, Central, Sber Investments, Reuters, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Russian, Ukraine, Russia's, Moscow, Russia, Europe

☆ Russian rouble sinks, Kremlin blames loose monetary policy
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"The main source of rouble weakening and accelerating inflation is soft monetary policy," Oreshkin wrote. "The central bank has all the tools to normalise the situation in the near future and ensure that lending rates are reduced to sustainable levels. Last week, Russia effectively abandoned its budget rule, with the central bank halting the finance ministry's FX purchases to try and reduce volatility. "The central bank is not fully in control," independent Moscow-based economist Ian Melkumov told Reuters, although it has aggressive tools that it is currently reluctant to use. "(But) the central bank doesn't want to kill the economy and businesses in the same way it had to last year."

Persons: Kremlin, Rouble, Vladimir Putin's, Putin, Maxim Oreshkin, Oreshkin, Timothy Ash, Ian Melkumov, Alexander Marrow, Gareth Jones Organizations: TASS, Kremlin, of Russia, Moscow News Agency, Handout, REUTERS, Reuters, BlueBay Asset Management, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Ukraine, Russia, Moscow, London

☆ Kremlin blames loose monetary policy as rouble slides past 100 vs dollar
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"The main source of rouble weakening and accelerating inflation is soft monetary policy," Oreshkin wrote. "The central bank has all the tools to normalise the situation in the near future and ensure that lending rates are reduced to sustainable levels. "It is in the interests of the Russian economy to have a strong rouble." The central bank hiked rates by 100 basis points in July to 8.5%, having held them steady since September. Last week, Russia effectively abandoned its budget rule, with the central bank halting the finance ministry's FX purchases to try and reduce volatility.

Persons: Kremlin, Rouble, Vladimir Putin's, Putin, Maxim Oreshkin, Oreshkin, Timothy Ash, Alexander Marrow, Felix Light, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones Organizations: Moscow News Agency, Handout, TASS, Kremlin, Bank of, BlueBay Asset Management, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russia, MOSCOW, Ukraine, Bank of Russia, London

☆ Russian ruble slumps to near 17-month low, moves past 100 against the dollar
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

This pool image distributed by Sputnik agency shows Russian President Vladimir Putin meeting with the Tver region governor at the Kremlin in Moscow on August 9, 2023. The Russian ruble slid past 100 to the U.S. dollar on Monday, nearing a 17-month low as President Vladimir Putin's economic advisor blamed loose monetary policy for the rapid depreciation. Putin's economic advisor Maxim Oreshkin told Russia's state-owned Tass news agency that the depreciation would normalize in the near future." A weak ruble complicates the restructuring of the economy and negatively affects the real incomes of the population. In the interests of the Russian economy — a strong ruble," he said, according to a Google translation.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Vladimir Putin's, Maxim Oreshkin, William Jackson, Jackson Organizations: Sputnik, Kremlin, Russian, U.S, greenback, Bank of, Tass, Federal State Statistics Service, Capital Economics Locations: Tver, Moscow, Bank of Russia, Russia's, Russia, Russian

The Russian lunar mission, the first since 1976, is racing against India, which launched its Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander last month, and more broadly with the United States and China, both of which have advanced lunar exploration programs targeting the lunar south pole. The lander is expected to touch down on the moon on Aug. 21, Russia's space chief Yuri Borisov told Interfax on Friday. I hope that a highly precise soft landing on the moon will happen," Borisov told workers at the Vostochny cosmodrome after the launch, according to Interfax. A Japanese lunar landing failed last year and an Israeli mission failed in 2019. No country has made a soft landing on the south pole.

Persons: Roscosmos, Yuri Borisov, Borisov, Luna, Asif Siddiqi, Neil Armstrong, Maxim Litvak, Guy Faulconbridge, Joey Roulette, Leslie Adler, Gerry Doyle Organizations: India, Soyuz, Luna, Vostochny, NASA, Kremlin, Space, European Space Agency, Fordham University, Reuters, 2.1b, REUTERS U.S, European Union, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, United States, China, Vostochny cosmodrome, Moscow, Ukraine, Russian, Amur, Handout, Soviet, Soviet Union, India, Japan, Washington

☆ China's attendance at Saudi peace talks is 'bad news' for Putin — but Xi Jinping is still 'well served' by his friendship with Russia, expert says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Chinese diplomats attended Ukraine peace talks in Saudi Arabia, signaling a possible rift with Russia. While China's attendance is notable, the country is still benefiting from its relationship with Russia. Chinese leader Xi Jinping wants to be seen as an international stakeholder, an expert said. Participants in the talks, however, saw China's presence as a major win for Ukraine, the Financial Times reported. "So Xi wants to be seen as a responsible stakeholder — even as he rattles his saber towards Taiwan," Miles said.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Russia's, —, Putin, Simon Miles, Vladimir Putin, China's, Wang Yi, Sergei Lavrov, Miles, Xi, Ukraine's, Sergey Radchenko Organizations: Service, Privacy, China, Ukraine, Financial Times, Duke University's Sanford School of Public, Soviet Union, Russian, CNN, Kremlin, Johns Hopkins University, The New York Times Locations: Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Wall, Silicon, China, Moscow, Saudi, Soviet, Siberia, Taiwan, South China, Beijing

☆ The wartime economy is making Russians hoard cold hard cash more than ever — the money in circulation reached a record $187 billion in June
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In June, the amount of cash in circulation in Russia hit a record $187 billion, per its central bank. Russians are hoarding cold, hard cash amid economic uncertainty, an economist told Novaya Gazeta. Compensation to families of dead fighters and increased demand in Russian-occupied Ukrainian regions also add to the cash in circulation. In June, the amount of cash in circulation in Russia hit a record 17.9 trillion rubles, or $187 billion, data from the Russian central bank shows. To tame inflation, the Russian central bank its central bank raised interest rates by one percentage point on July 21 — double the 0.5 percentage point analysts polled by Reuters had expected.

Persons: Igor Lipsits, there's, Alexey Zabotkin, Wagner, Nikolay Korzhenevsky Organizations: Novaya Gazeta, Service, HSE University, RBC, Wagner Group, Bloomberg, Reuters Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Ukraine, —, Kazakhstan, Russia's

☆ In Urgent Need of Ammunition, Ukraine Speeds Its Own Production
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Gaya Gupta | Alina Lobzina | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

When an office building next to her gleaming glass residential skyscraper in Moscow was hit by a drone filled with explosives early on Sunday, Mari Kletanina seemed worried. “People are consciously or unconsciously ignoring it,” wrote Aleksandr Kynev, a Russian political analyst. “This is the time of сonflict, a conflict of interests, so this is a natural procedure,” Mr. Yzakov said. “We live in a difficult time.”Russian government officials seemed to be more serious about the threat. “If attacks continue, then there will be no new sales at the current prices.”

Persons: Mari Kletanina, Kletanina, ”, Aleksandr Kynev, “, Mirlan Yzakov, Mr, Yzakov, Maria Zakharova, Dmitri S, Peskov, ” Andrei Perla, Vladimir V, Putin, Maksim Khodyrev, Khodyrev Organizations: Russian Foreign Ministry Locations: Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Russian, Kremlin

☆ The Ukraine war is great for China — it gets 'fire sale prices' on oil and gas and leaves its rivals, the US and Russia, 'tied down and bleeding each other,' experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

China says it's neutral in the Russia-Ukraine war and even tried to broker a peace deal earlier this year. However, experts told Insider that China has good reason to stay friendly with Russia as war wages. China is pocketing discounted oil and gas and enjoying geopolitical perks as a result of the war. But amid the chaos and costs, there's at least one country reaping the benefits of the brutal conflict, two Russia experts told Insider. But two experts who study Russia told Insider that China has good reason to stay friendly with its Eastern neighbor as war wages.

Persons: Robert English, China —, Simon Miles, Miles, Russia's Organizations: Service, —, University of Southern, US, Politico, Duke University's Sanford School of Public, Soviet Union Locations: China, Russia, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, — Russia, University of Southern California, Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Soviet, Beijing, Moscow, Russian, Africa, Latin America

☆ Ikea left Russia — but yet another copycat has popped up in its place. The real store says it could take action.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Kylie Kirschner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Good Luck, an Ikea copycat, joins the ranks of rebranded dupes of many western chains in Russia. And now, a store called Good Luck has opened in Moscow as an Ikea copycat. "The departure of Ikea is not a reason to abandon the usual interior design," Good Luck writes on its website. There are no suppliers for bathroom and kitchen items yet, employees at the store told the Moscow Times. Vlad Karkov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty ImagesConvincing Ikea dupe or not, Good Luck already has ambitious plans for expansion, it says.

Persons: Vladimir Putin's, McD's, Alexander Zemlianichenko Jr, —, it's, Good Luck, couldn't, McDonald's, ALEXANDER NEMENOV, Luck, Vlad Karkov Organizations: Ikea, Moscow Times, Service, McDonalds, Kentucky Fried, McDonald's, KFC, Starbucks, Getty, Swed, IKEA Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, Kentucky, Moscow, McDonalds, Zara, Ukraine, Swedish, Russian, Belarusian, AFP, Soviet

☆ Ukraine's NATO membership would be bad for Putin, but great for the Russian economy, professor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia's economy could return to global markets if Ukraine joins NATO, Konstantin Sonin wrote. The Russia scholar said Kyiv's membership in the alliance would make it harder for the Kremlin to justify outsized military spending. Such rhetoric typically prioritized high military spending over economic welfare, a factor in the Soviet Union's 1991 downfall, Konstantin said. "To be sure, bringing Ukraine into NATO would not undo the damage Putin has inflicted on the Russian economy," he said. And the growth of military spending has been difficult to track because an increasingly larger portion of it has been determined a state secret.

Persons: Konstantin Sonin, Putin, Vladimir Putin, Long, Konstantin Organizations: NATO, Service, University of Chicago, Project Syndicate Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Soviet

☆ Putin’s ruthless power play may not preclude a revival of Ukraine grain deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Guterres said that he’d sent Russia proposals to keep the grain deal alive but that he was “deeply disappointed” that his efforts went unheeded. The UN chief’s comments reinforced a view that, for now, Russia sees a point of leverage in refusing to renew the Black Sea grain deal. Erdogan won prestige and the gratitude of his fellow NATO leaders and developing nations for brokering the original grain deal. So it may risk damaging its own priorities by triggering widespread food shortages, especially since much of Ukraine’s grain is used in World Food Programs to alleviate famine in Africa. While the end of the grain deal would cause significant global hardship, its worst effects may be weeks away – so there could be time for diplomacy to work.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Joe Biden, Putin, Volodymyr Zelensky’s, Antony Blinken, it’s, ”, There’s, Dmitry Peskov, General António Guterres, Guterres, he’d, “, autocrats — Putin, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, cannily, He’d, Michael Kimmage, ” Kimmage, Kimmage, “ That’s, ” John Kirby, Nicolay Gorbachov, Isa Soares Organizations: CNN, United Nations, NATO, Kremlin, UN, Putin, State Department, Catholic University of America, National Security Council, Ukrainian Grain Association, CNN International Locations: Ukraine, Africa, United States, Crimean, Russian, Turkey, Russia, West, Eurasia, Moscow, Turkish, Europe, Washington

☆ Heineken, Unilever and Oreo maker Mondelez accused of breaking promises to leave Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

It’s shameful and unethical.”Sonnenfeld, who has testified before Congress about companies leaving Russia, is not accusing these corporations of breaking the law. ‘Implied endorsement of the Putin regime’The “poster child” for this problem is the popular Dutch brewing giant Heineken, Sonnenfeld said. In March 2022, just one month after the invasion of Ukraine, Heineken won praise for promising to leave Russia. “We expect a significant financial loss to the Heineken company. The Yale research said Mondelez shows “no tangible signs of progress towards exiting” and continues to do business in Russia.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Jeff Sonnenfeld, Philip Morris, ” Sonnenfeld, “, ”, ‘, Putin, Sonnenfeld, Steven Tian, ExxonMobil –, ” Heineken, ” Mondelez, Mondelez, That’s, Lipton, Mark Dixon, Nestle, Kit Kat, Purina, Sbarro, Carl’s Jr, Carl’s, Yale, Tim Calkins, Calkins Organizations: New York CNN Business, Yale, Heineken, Unilever, CNN, ”, Institute . Yale, BP, ExxonMobil, Nabisco, Kyiv School of Economics, Agency, Nestle, WeWork, Mondelez, McDonald’s, Starbucks, Restaurants Holdings, CKE, Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Russian, ”, American, South Africa

☆ Russia economy: Former CIA chief David Petraeus says US needs to 'tighten the screws'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

‘An economy that is hemorrhaging’Western sanctions have not delivered a deathblow to the Russian economy. Some, including economist Larry Summers, argue that economic penalties on Russia haven’t bitten as hard as anticipated because not enough countries have imposed sanctions. Others, like Yale professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, say sanctions are “working tremendously” well against Russia. Petraeus praised the Treasury Department’s “very impressive” sanctions campaign, led by Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo. But the former CIA chief noted the complexity involved in modern sanctions, where target countries often find ways to evade restrictions.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, David Petraeus, “ Putin, ” Petraeus, month’s Wagner, Petraeus, Putin, ”, “ They’ve, Larry Summers, Russia haven’t, Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, ” Sonnenfeld, Wally Adeyemo, “, Biden, Washington hasn’t, ’, you’re Organizations: New, New York CNN, CNN, KKR Global Institute, Reuters, US Central Command, CIA, Yale, KKR Locations: New York, Washington, Moscow, Russian, Europe, Russia, “ Russia, Ukraine, Kyiv

☆ Putin says Russian economy faring better than expected
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Lidia Kelly | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 5 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said late on Tuesday that the Russian economy was performing better than expected after Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin reported to him that gross domestic product growth and inflation have been surprisingly positive. GDP growth may exceed 2% this year and consumer price inflation may not rise above 5% in annual terms, Mishustin told Putin at a meeting at the Kremlin. The International Monetary Fund expects the Russian economy to grow 0.7% this year. "Our results, at least for the time being, let's say, cautiously, are better than previously expected, better than predicted," Putin said, according to a transcript on the Kremlin's website. On Tuesday, Mishustin told Putin that he had confidence that if there was no force majeure circumstances, the economy would perform well this year.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Mikhail Mishustin, Mishustin, Putin, Kyiv's, Russia's technocrats, Vladimir Vladimirovich, Anton Siluanov, Lidia Kelly, David Gregorio, Michael Perry Organizations: Kremlin, Monetary Fund, Reuters, Moscow, Monetary, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Melbourne

☆ Senior Russian lawmaker calls for professional army of seven million
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Lawmaker Leonid Slutsky, who early in the 16-month war took part in peace negotiations with Ukraine, said that Russia needs a contract army of at least seven million military and civilian personnel, on top of the current conscript army. He said Wagner fighters can continue fighting with Russian army, go home or go to Belarus. At the end of 2022, Putin backed beefing up the army to 1.5 million combat personnel - including 695,000 contract soldiers - from 1.15 million. Creating a contract army of seven million would require a huge budget allowance. The Russian economy, crippled by the war and subsequent Western sanctions contracted 2.2% percent last year and is expected to rebound only marginally this year.

Persons: Leonid Slutsky, Sergei Lavrov, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, Evgenia, weekend's, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Lidia Kelly, Stephen Coates Organizations: Russia's, Russian, Qatari Deputy, Foreign, REUTERS, Liberal Democratic Party, Thomson Locations: Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al, Thani, Moscow, Russia, Russian, Ukraine, aborting, Belarus, Melbourne

☆ Russia has been using the Chinese yuan to get around sweeping Western sanctions — but this side door may be closing
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The bank made the move over fears of secondary sanctions from the West, per RBC. Russia has been using the Chinese yuan to get around Western sanctions. Russian clients can still make yuan transfers within the Bank of China network, Semyonov added to RBC. The Chinese yuan surpassed the US dollar as the most heavily traded currency in February and March, according to Bloomberg data. Semyonov told RBC that Russian yuan transfers to the US and EU make up just 3% of all transfers in the currency.

Persons: —, Russia's, Pavel Semyonov, Dmitry Lesnov, Semyonov, Finam Organizations: of, RBC, Service, The Bank of, European, Bank of China, EU, Novaya Gazeta, The, Swift, Bloomberg, Reuters Locations: of China, EU, Switzerland, Russia, The Bank of China, European Union, Modulbank, China, Novaya, Novaya Gazeta Europe, Ukraine

☆ Vladimir Putin delivers keynote address at St Petersburg forum
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

MOSCOW, June 16 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin delivered the keynote address at Russia's showcase St Petersburg International Economic Forum. DE-DOLLARISATION:"We have never had, and do not have, the goal of de-dollarisation of the Russian economy. And we have never had, and do not have, the goal of influencing the de-dollarisation of the world economy. The influence of one or another currency on the world economy is connected with the economic potential of the country that is the issuer of that currency." UKRAINE CONFLICT:"Soon Ukraine will stop using its own equipment altogether.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, F16s, JOE BIDEN, Biden, It's, Gareth Jones Organizations: St Petersburg, Economic, Reuters, Eurasian Economic, Leopards, UNITED STATES, Russian Federation, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, RUSSIAN, RUSSIA, China, Russia, Russian, OPEC, UKRAINE, Ukraine, NATO

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