-Russian economy accelerates growth
The Russian economy accelerated its growth despite sanctions. The report, The View on Commercial Activities, July 2018, published by the Russian Ministry of Economic Development, revealed that the Russian economy, which expanded by 1.3 percent in the first quarter of this year, grew by 1.8 percent in the second quarter.
The report also shows that the retail trade volume grew by 3 percent annually in June, thanks to the Russia-hosted 2018 FIFA World Cup, while inflation was between 2.4 and 2.6 percent during this period.
As the World Cup ends, the contribution of the championship to the Russian economy is up for dispute and continues to be a topic of discussion.
Maya Lomidze, the president of the Russian Tour Operators Association (ATOR), said last week that the contribution of the 2018 FIFA World Cup to the Russian economy was 850 billion rubles (about $13.7 billion).
"The champion's contribution to Russia's gross national product was more than 1 percent, i.e. 850 billion rubles. We can say that this figure meets the expenses for the championship," she said.
According to a study conducted by Russian Sberbank, foreigners who visited Russia spent about $1.5 billion in the country during the World Cup.
Nonetheless, in a statement released recently by the credit rating agency Moody's, they claimed the positive economic impact from the tournament would be “limited” due to the large scale of Russia’s economy.
According to a recent statement released by the Russian State Statistical Institute (Rosstat), the trade volume in the construction sector declined by 1 percent to 2.9 trillion rubles (about $46 billion) in the January-June period this year compared to the same period last year.
Ukraine signals reconciliation with Russia in natural gas
Andrey Kobolev, the top manager of the Ukrainian natural gas company Naftogaz, announced last week that they are ready to evaluate the Russian energy company Gazprom’s proposals for the non-binding arbitration settlement of natural gas disputes.
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak also said they were ready to extend the current contract for natural to Europe via Ukraine.
The two energy companies Gazprom and Naftogaz filed separate claims against each other in 2014 at the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce. Naftogaz demanded Gazprom pay $17 billion, claiming that the Russian company had not fulfilled its natural gas delivery obligations. The Arbitration Institute recently concluded the dispute in favor of the Ukrainian company. The arbitral institute ruled that Gazprom should pay Naftogaz $2.56 billion.