Maria Zakatova, an analyst at the research company NTech, gave a forecast for changes in the cost of products in the coming spring. She spoke about how the price of basic goods will change in Russia in an interview with Izvestia on Tuesday, February 14.
She pointed out that at the beginning of the year, prices rose for almost all food products and, in her opinion, the situation is unlikely to change for the better by spring.
At the same time, the specialist noted that vegetables, which had risen in price in January and were imported to Russia from other countries in winter, will sharply become cheaper in March.
“With the beginning of spring, cucumbers and tomatoes will come from the southern regions of our country; artificial light is not needed for their cultivation. Therefore, their prices will fall,” said Zakatova.
She added that meat prices in Russia in the spring, probably, if they grow, it will be very insignificant.
“The increase in the cost of pork and poultry meat is unlikely to be significant, because. demand for these types of meat is covered by domestic producers by 90% and 95%, respectively. And given the good harvest in 2022, the rise in prices for pork and poultry meat will not be higher than average inflation,” the analyst explained.
As for the prices for alcohol and tobacco products, they, according to the specialist, will grow strongly due to the increase in excise rates.
“The minimum cost of sparkling wine per bottle will rise by 40%. And for tobacco products, prices will increase by an average of 4%,” Zakatova said.
Earlier, on February 1, it was reported that in the third quarter of 2022, the average check in grocery trade in Russia amounted to 669.7 rubles against 618 rubles a year earlier, that is, the figure increased by 8.4%. It was noted that the largest increase in the average check occurred in the first quarter of 2022, as a result of the removal of anti-COVID restrictions.
