INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russian authorities remain in talks with the leading grocery store again on rate controls ahead of the end-of-the-year holiday
The Kremlin is particularly worried about the skyrocketing price of mayonnaise.The Kommersantbusinessdaily reported that the countrys
biggest mayo producer, Essen Production, cautioned that merchants would hike costs by approximately 10% on mayo, approximately 15% for
mayo-containing sauces and as much as 10% for tomato sauce as of Dec
That is a big problem in Russia
They love mayo, which is among the main ingredients of Olivier salad
This potato, pea and ham salad is to the Russian vacation table what turkey is to Thanksgiving dinner.This seasons rate hike is the second
increase in mayo prices by Essen this year, supposedly credited to more expensive vegetable oil, its main ingredient
Eggs, the other primary active ingredient of mayo, have likewise remained in brief supply and become more expensive.Analysts surveyed by the
paper said that other manufacturers could follow Essens cost hike.Higher food prices ahead of the vacations would further magnify
inflationary pressures(chart), in addition to themost current serious weakening of the rubleand theseasonal hike in both state and home
spending.The Russian Central Bank has actually been having a hard time to check runawayinflation, whichpeakedat9.1% in July and has actually
only fallen somewhat ever since
The Central Bank isexpected to keep raising the crucial interest rate, presently already set at a record-high 21%, at its next scheduled
monetary policy board conference on Dec
According to a separate report by theIzvestiadaily, leading dairy producers held a conference at the Agriculture Ministry and concurred with
the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) and the biggest sellers on a visible reduction in costs for socially important items before the New
Year holidays.The Kremlin has actually turned to these administrative tools to bring high costs on staples down in the past and sellers and
producers have actually worked together previously, however only for a minimal time.Containing price rises before the vacations begin is
politically important for the Putin administration which is striving to shield the population from the worst effects of the war in
Ukraine.Reportedly, the largest dairy manufacturers such as Molvest, EkoNiva, Renna and others, will minimize costs by 10-15% for a narrow
range of items: cheap milk with a fat material of 2.5%, butter with a fat content of 72% and some others
At the same time, merchants will limit the markup on these products to 5-10% until completion of freezing at manufacturers.Notably, while
some sellers (the biggest players X5, Magnit, Dixy and French Auchan) accepted the FAS proposal, others such as Metro, Lenta, MariaRa and
Monetka declined it, according toIzvestia.This post was originally published by bne IntelliNews.
