Russia should not fall prey to starvation due to Putin's whims; Food products prices hiked by 45%, long queues at ATMs

Posted on 16th Mar 2022 by rohit kumar

Not only the people of Ukraine, but the Russian people are also paying the price for the war between Russia and Ukraine. Even though there are no ammunition attacks in Russia, inflation has broken the back of the common man.

 

The price of food items in Russia has increased by up to 45%. Not only this, the prices of telecom, medical, automobile, agriculture, and electrical products have also increased rapidly.

 

The product which was available in 3500 is now available in 5100

 

After the start of the war, many countries of the European Union including America imposed economic sanctions on Russia. Due to this, the value of the Russian currency ruble came down by 30% against the dollar. In such a situation, the price of food items in Russia increased by 45%. According to the BBC report, the groceries which were earlier available for Rs 3,500 are now being sold for Rs 5,100.

 

Milk prices in Russia have doubled in the past two weeks. It is also being claimed in some reports that even the purchase of people's goods is being banned in many malls and shops. It is clear that if the war did not stop and the sanctions continue to be imposed on Russia in the same way, then it may go to the verge of starvation in the coming times.

 

Not only food items, but the price of many other items has increased.

 

America and European countries account for 40% of the world's business. This is the reason that due to the lack of imports from European countries after the ban, now there is a shortage of raw materials in all types of Russian factories. The report claimed that there is also a shortage of many essential medicines in Russia.

 

If we understand the rising inflation in Russia through data, then from February 26 to March 4, an increase of 2.2% has been registered in the consumer price of Russia, which is very high. The prices of electronic goods have also increased by 17%. Similarly, the prices of laptops, automobiles, and electronic goods have also increased. The Forbes report has claimed that the price of some items used in Moscow cafes has increased by up to 300%.

 

Long queues outside Russian banks and ATMs

 

Russia's economy has come to its knees after being ousted from SWIFT, the largest organization with online transactions. Currently, the Russian currency is trading at 112 against one dollar. The ruble has never been so weak against the dollar in the last 4 decades.

 

For this reason, the Reserve Bank of Russia has banned the withdrawal of money above Rs 7.65 lakh. This is the reason why there is a long queue of people in front of banks and ATMs in Russia. However, Russia is constantly in touch with China to deal with the sanctions of America and Western countries. This is the reason that after being excluded from SWIFT, Russia has moved towards China's Cross Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS).

 

The number of companies leaving Russia increased to 59

 

Russian newspaper Izvestia has claimed that the number of companies closing business in Russia has increased to 59. These include Volkswagen, Apple, Microsoft, Toyota, McDonald's, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, etc. Vladimir Potanin, Russia's richest and owner of Norilsk Nickel (NILSY) company, warned the Putin government, saying, 'Russia can go back 100 years in the matter of summing up the business of so many companies. Russia fears going into a difficult period of the 1917 revolution if the doors are closed to Western companies and investors.

 

Also Read: Ukraine took the help of AI in the war: the identification of the enemy from the US search engine; Photos of 20 million Russian citizens are in the database

 

According to reports, the unemployment rate in Russia was 4.4% in January 2022, which could more than double in the coming month.

 

Inflation increased due to war not only in Russia but around the world

 

Russia and Ukraine meet 30% of the world's need for wheat. This is the reason that due to the ongoing war between the two, inflation is increasing not only in these two countries but all over the world. This can be gauged from the fact that due to the increasing demand for wheat in neighboring countries including Europe, India has now started exporting wheat rapidly.

 

Due to this, the wheat which was being sold at Rs 1800 per quintal in the market, has now started selling at Rs 2100 to 2400 per quintal. African countries are suffering the most in this, which mostly depend on these two countries for their grain needs.

 

In the past, the United Nations has said that 45 African countries import about a third of wheat from Ukraine. 18 countries import wheat from these two countries up to 50% of their expenditure. In such a situation, now due to war in these countries of Africa, there may be situations like inflation and starvation.

 

NATO countries also suffer from US sanctions on Russia

 

Due to the war, there has been a shortage of not only wheat but also dairy products, electronic goods, automobile goods, etc. in many countries including Europe included in NATO. According to the BBC report, this war has mainly affected the lives of European countries in 4 ways-

 

The consumption and price of electricity or gas for heating the room has increased.

 

The price of many food items, including dairy products, has increased.

 

Because of inflation, the US Federal Reserve and Bank of England can also increase interest rates.

 

Car prices may increase worldwide in the coming days.