Weekly inflation hits 14-year high in Russia

By Emre Gurkan Abay

MOSCOW (AA) - Weekly inflation in Russia rose to 2.2%, the highest level since 2008, the Russian Federal Statistical Institute (Rosstat) said Wednesday.

The agency said prices increased significantly during the week of Feb. 26 - March 4 due to sanctions imposed by Western countries in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Domestic car prices increased 17%, home appliance prices rose 15%, television shot up 15% and smartphone prices saw a jump of almost 10%.

The Russian Ministry of Economic Development said separately that the annual inflation rate reached 10.4%.

Experts said the depreciation of the ruble against the dollar has not yet been fully reflected in prices and inflation is expected to further increase.

*Writing by Gokhan Ergocun in Istanbul