Inflation, which has been soaring in Russia for months, accelerated further in April, reaching 17.8% year on year, data showed on Friday. A level more reached since 2002.
Compared to April 2021, food prices in particular have soared by 20.5%, according to the statistics agency Rosstat. Basic products are among the most affected: cereals (+35.5%), pasta (+29.6%), butter (+26.1%) and fruits and vegetables (+33%).
Prices for audiovisual equipment, such as televisions, rose 22.7%, while prices for building materials rose 27.5%.
Compared to March this year, prices rose 1.6% in April.
Over the whole of 2022, annual inflation could reach 23%, before slowing next year and returning to the target of 4% in 2024, according to the Russian Central Bank.
a headache for the authorities
Inflation is linked to the post-pandemic recovery and soaring commodity prices, now combined with Western sanctions against Russia and their share of logistics disruptions.
The price hike is undermining Russians’ purchasing power and proving a headache for the authorities, who have attempted controversial price control measures.
The Central Bank drastically increased its rate to 20% in the wake of the first sanctions after the entry of Russian troops into Ukraine at the end of February, before starting a gradual decline, currently at 14%.
President Vladimir Putin assured Thursday that the West suffered more than Russia from the sanctions imposed on Moscow because of the offensive in Ukraine, boasting of a great resistance of the Russian economy in the face of “external challenges”.