Nations in the European Union approved an embargo on Russian coal and closed the bloc’s ports to Russian vessels as part of a fifth round of sanctions following allegations of Russian soldiers executing civilians in Ukraine. The French EU Council presidency said in a series of tweets on April 8 that the latest “very substantial…

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has expanded sanctions on Russian company Alrosa, a state-owned enterprise that is the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds. “All transactions ordinarily incident and necessary to the wind down of transactions involving Public Joint Stock Company Alrosa or any entity in which Alrosa owns, directly…

Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is imposing sanctions on all federal Australian members of Parliament in response to the supposedly “unfriendly actions” of the government, which has worked in lockstep with democratic allies to penalise Russian officials over the invasion of Ukraine. On April 7, the Russian ministry criticised Australian authorities for following the “collective…

U.S. wheat prices climbed for the second consecutive day amidst reports that more sanctions are being considered against Russia for its ongoing war in Ukraine and alleged crimes against the civilian population. U.S. wheat futures registered its lowest closing price in a month on April 1 at $9.84 per bushel. After rising on Monday, it…

Russia’s central bank plans to restart its purchase of gold from banks beginning March 28 in a bid to “balance supply and demand in the domestic precious metals market,” and bring back a semblance of normalcy to the country’s economy. The central bank will pay a fixed rate of 5,000 rubles ($49) per gram of…

President Joe Biden’s administration is preparing to unveil another round of sanctions against Russia, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on March 22. The sanctions will be announced in coordination with the European Union. “[The president] will join our partners in imposing further sanctions on Russia and tightening the existing sanctions to crack…

Western businesses and banks with operations in Russia—whether they intend to exit the country or stay in business there—are facing massive difficulties as they attempt to balance international pressure to divest and potential retaliation from Moscow. Over 400 Western companies have exited Russia since the invasion of Ukraine, leaving behind billions of dollars in assets….

President Vladimir Putin is claiming that Russia has survived widespread international economic sanctions following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, but he admitted that the country will see rising inflation and unemployment in the future. Putin defended the military action in a televised government meeting March 16 and called on Russian citizens to “mobilize” to face the…

Rating agency Fitch has downgraded the Long-Term Foreign Currency (LTFC) Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) of 31 Russian banks from “B” to “CC” and Short-Term IDRs from “B” to “C.” “Russian banks’ LTFC IDRs now reflect our opinion that some form of default on FC (foreign currency ) financial obligations or deposits is probable over the…

Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the resulting international sanctions have triggered fears of a potential debt default by Moscow, something which economist William Jackson says is unlikely. A Russian default will likely be “symbolic” and not have any significant consequences within Russia or elsewhere, Jackson, the chief emerging markets economist at Capital Economics, said in…