During a controversial visit to Crimea president Putin descended to the bottom of the Black Sea to look at a medieval shipwreck. Kiev responded angrily. According to Russia it is a domestic affair. The rouble reached a new low. After a period of recovery in the first half of the year the value of the Russian coin dropped again. Moody's writes in a report that Russia's goal of independence from import only works for food. Other sectors that have also been focussed on own production, such as machine building, aren't profiting from the measures. Russia opened a reporting line to report smugglers and 15 tonnes of Polish apples were destroyed.
photo: www.kremlin.ru
Putin's controversial visit to Crimea
The political top of Russia visited Crimea. This included prime minister Medvedev and president Putin visiting the annexed island. Kiev responded angrily to the visit to Crimea, which still belongs to the Ukraine according to Kiev. The Russian ministry of foreign affairs responded to Kiev with surprise, as according to Russia it is a domestic affair. During the visit Putin pointed out the importance of tourism to the island and went down in a diving boat to the bottom of the Black Seas to a medieval ship that was discovered a few months ago. He also said to journalists that the blame for the violence in eastern Ukraine does not lie with the separatists, but with the Ukraine.
Rouble reaches new low
The Russian coin has reached a new low compared to the dollar. Never before in the last six months was the rouble so low. After the quick devaluation in December of last year, the coin managed to claw its way up in the first half of this year. Since the start of the summer the coin has lost value again. The actual exchange rate is around 65 rouble for a dollar and almost 73 rouble for a Euro. At the lowest point in December 70 roubles were needed to buy a dollar and around 85 roubles for a Euro.
Moody's: import substitution only works for food
According to the Global Macro Outlook, set up by Moody's, Russia's import substitution is failing in all fronts, apart from food. Besides the boycott of food which is intended to promote the Russian agriculture, the government has also taken measures to decrease the dependence of imports in the industry. Moody's concludes that the Russian machine industry isn't profiting from the measures, unlike the agriculture. A factor is that the investment cycle in the industry is longer, which means it takes longer before the results are visible.
15 tonnes of apples destroyed
In the Russian state Perm a party of apples were destroyed. According to Russia the apples were illegal imports from Poland. Customs officials found the party in a packaging house in Izjevsk. The 120 boxes of apples were immediately destroyed.
Russian reporting line for smugglers
Russia has opened a special reporting line where illegal import and sales of prohibited goods from abroad can be reported, reports the NFO in their newsletter based on Russian media. The 'hot line' is available between 9.00 and 18.00 on 8 (985) 169-75-74 or 8 (985) 169-75-77
Belarus and the boycott
In an extensive article at Belarusdigest.com Igar Gubarevich describes the role of Belarus since the boycott. Straight after Russia announced the boycott last August, Belarus announced they wished to raise the import to Russia. At first neighbouring countries such as Poland, Lithuania and Latvia wanted to invest in production facilities to conduct export to Russia via Belarus. This turned out to be a path full of obstacles. Smuggling soon got going and a blind eye was turned at first. After a number of months Russia actively started to resist the smuggling and interceptions were openly announced. But this couldn't stop the illegal trade. Between January and March this year 200 forged documents from Belarus were found. Smuggling is also clear from the country's trade figures. Last year the country imported 208 tonnes more apples from the EU and Moldova, the export to Russia increased by 198 tonnes, or 142%.
Read the full article about the role of Belarus here
Moldova wants a good relationship with EU and Russia
The Moldavian prime minister Valeriu Strelets refuted criticism that the country wanted to get closer to Russia. According to the prime minister the country's focus remains on the West, but also wants to maintain a good relationship with Russia. The relationship with the West took a blow last year when a corruption scandal in the banking sector came to light. Moldova recently invited the Russian prime minister Medvedev to visit. After a period where Russia boycotted products from Moldova, the country is slowly opening its borders for Moldavian products.
Moldova wants a good relationship with EU and Russia
The Moldavian prime minister Valeriu Strelets refuted criticism that the country wanted to get closer to Russia. According to the prime minister the country's focus remains on the West, but also wants to maintain a good relationship with Russia. The relationship with the West took a blow last year when a corruption scandal in the banking sector came to light. Moldova recently invited the Russian prime minister Medvedev to visit. After a period where Russia boycotted products from Moldova, the country is slowly opening its borders for Moldavian products.
Poland hit hardest by boycott
According to the Russian customs, the boycotted countries are losing up to $8 billion per quarter. Polish exporters are hit the hardest. According to Russian estimate Polish fruit and nut exporters are losing $258 million. According to Poland the loss is $228.4 million. Spain is second with a loss of $181 million, followed by Greece with a loss of $103 million. Spain was hit the hardest in vegetables at $154 million. Poland is second with a lot of $121 million.
Magnit takes new greenhouse into use
Supermarket giant Magnit has complete the second phase of the construction of a greenhouse complex in the region Krasnodar Krai. The complex covers 83 hectares. The extension of 40ha of the existing greenhouse started in October last year. Cucumbers are grown in the greenhouse, with 3 hectares reserved for other products.