Henry Kirby in London -
A recent poll by Russia’s Levada Centre has shown that despite rocketing food prices, the desire to protest in Russia is close to an all-time low at 12%, while support for President Putin has matched the all-time-high approval rating of 88% - a figure last seen in September 2008.
As our chart shows, Russia’s ban on food imports from countries that have imposed sanctions on it has caused sharp rises in food prices, with the cost of meat and poultry rising by 16.8 per cent in September, according to Russia’s state statistical agency, Rosstat. Inflation hit 8 per cent in September, while the ruble’s value plummeted to 47 to the dollar in early November.
Jason Corcoran in Moscow - Russian banks are disappearing at the fastest rate ever as the country's deepening recession makes it easier for the central bank to expose money laundering, dodgy lending ... more
bne IntelliNews - The Kremlin supported by national sports authorities has brushed aside "groundless" allegations of a mass doping scam involving Russian athletes after the World Anti-Doping Agency ... more
Jason Corcoran in Moscow - Revelations and mysticism may have been the stock-in-trade of Nikolai Tsvetkov’s management style, but ultimately they didn’t help him to hold on to his ... more