The Bank of Russia unexpectedly maintained its key interest rate at a record-high 21% , defying analysts’ expectations of another significant hike as inflation remains stubbornly elevated. The decision marks a shift toward a more measured approach in balancing economic growth and price stability. Key Details Inflation Concerns: Annual inflation climbed to 8.9% in November, well above the central bank’s 4% target , with inflation expectations reaching 13.9% in December. Policy Rationale: The central bank cited the significant tightening of monetary conditions after October’s 200-basis point hike as sufficient to resume disinflationary processes. Governor Elvira Nabiullina emphasized avoiding both economic overheating and severe slowdowns. Economic Overheating: Elevated government spending on the war in Ukraine and social programs, coupled with labor shortages and rising wages, have fueled strong domestic demand, exacerbating price pressures...
Iran sheds ECONOMIC SANCTION, allowing it to move out from under the yoke of crippling economic sanctions, the United Nations’ nuclear agency announced Saturday.
ECONOMIC SANCTION NO MORE
The country has complied with terms of an international agreement to curb its nuclear development program.
The International Atomic Energy Agency concluded that the Islamic Republic had curbed its ability to develop an atomic weapon as required under an accord with world powers.
“Iran has undertaken significant steps that many people doubted would ever come to pass,” clearing the way for sanctions to end, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said in Vienna late Saturday after Iran’s compliance with the agreement was certified. Still, he said the accord “doesn’t wipe away all of the concerns” of the international community, and “verification remains, as it always has been, the backbone of this agreement."
With some sanctions lifted, Iran is setting in motion a deal with Airbus Group SE to add 114 new and used jets for Iran Air, whose fleet averages an estimated 26.8 years of age, according to website Planespotters.net. Aircraft of that vintage are practically antiques by industry standards, and the more-modern Airbus planes will let Iran Air expand domestically and fly more overseas routes.
TENSIONS ESCALATING
The IAEA assessment sets off a financial windfall for Iran that regional competitors Saudi Arabia and Israel, which bitterly opposed the deal, say will empower the theocracy in Tehran and further destabilize the Middle East. Tensions between mainly Shiite Muslim Iran and Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia have escalated since the agreement was signed, helping fuel wars from Syria to Yemen where they back opposing sides.
“Israel will continue to monitor and warn about Iran’s dangerous activities and will do everything it can to protect its own security and defend itself,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement released by his office in Jerusalem.
As holder of the world’s fourth-largest reserves of crude and largest of natural gas, Iran gains immediate access to about $50 billion in frozen accounts overseas, funds the government says it will use to rebuild industries and infrastructure. It also opens the door to foreign investors who are keen to enter a relatively untapped market of 77 million people.
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