Panic buying swept across Russia, as the country’s national currency depreciated at the fastest rate in years following the Western sanctions imposed on Moscow due to its invasion of Ukraine. Some market shelves are already empty, and authorities imposed sales restrictions on some products, including basic food items.
The depreciation of the Russian ruble and the problems in shipments due to extensive sanctions are also reflected in the prices of the products in the country.
The weekly inflation rose to 2.2% in the period between Feb. 26 and March 4 after the start of the war, which has been recorded as the highest increase since 2008.
There were also significant increases in the prices of products in the week covering March 5-11. While weekly inflation stood at 2.1%, annual inflation rose by 2.1 percentage points to 12.5% for the first time since December 2015.
The price of sugar, of which Russia is a net exporter, has increased by about 15% since the first day of March. The price of tomatoes rose 17% and the price of bananas rose by 16%. While egg prices have increased by 25% since March 1, producers warn that there may be another 40% increase in prices in the medium term.
In some stores, the amount of sugar, salt and buckwheat that can be bought per person has been limited due to increasing demand. In many stores, the shelves for the products in question remained empty.
The Russian press also reported that exams in some schools in St. Petersburg were postponed due to the lack of paper.
The war, which began with Russia's invasion on Feb. 24 – called a "special military operation" by Moscow – prompted a series of sanctions from the United States and European countries.
The value of the Russian ruble has plunged to historic lows after world powers imposed unprecedented sanctions.
There have been concerns about Russia defaulting on its debt, but it paid $117 million in interest on two dollar-denominated bonds last week.
On Monday, the ruble traded at 105 to the dollar as investors awaited a planned resumption of OFZ treasury bond trading and eyed a $66 million coupon on a 2029 sovereign dollar bond due the same day.
Russia’s central bank has allowed a limited number of additional market operations over the next two weeks, though it is yet to say when trading in instruments like stocks can resume.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a statement on March 16, stated that they are aware of the difficulties in the country's economy and that they will raise their civil servant salaries and pensions.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitriy Peskov, separately said on March 18 that "Russians have absolutely no need to run to the shops and buy buckwheat, sugar and toilet paper."
While the state monopoly of sugar sales in the country was on the agenda, the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Andrey Belousov instructed the Russian Ministry of Agriculture to fix sugar prices in the country. The Russian government announced that sugar exports had stopped with its decision on March 14.
In addition to food products in Russia, there are also increases in the prices of electronics and automobiles, where shipments have significantly reduced.
Between Feb. 28 and March 18, automobile prices increased by 17%, television prices increased by 22% and mobile phone prices increased by 12%.