Inflation in November set a new five -year record. Now the increase in the rate of the Central Bank by 75-100 points is almost inevitable An increase in the Central Bank rate by 100 points immediately in a week becomes more and more likely. Inflation in November in Russia set the next record - it amounted to 8.4% in annual terms, this is a maximum of January 2016.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday, December 8 , announced the strengthening of coronavirus restrictions in the country to slow the spread of the omicron strain.

The new German parliamentary coalition, under Chancellor Olaf Scholze , who took office on December 8, will not cling to the Nord Stream 2 project in the same way as under Angela Merkel, writes the Financial Times. According to the newspaper, the new chancellor is also not against the inclusion of the gas pipeline in the sanctions package in the event of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The new German parliamentary coalition under Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who took office on December 8, will not hold on to the Nord Stream 2 project in the same way as under Angela Merkel, writes the Financial Times. According to the newspaper, the new chancellor is also not against including the gas pipeline in the sanctions package in the event of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Inflation in November set a new five-year record. Now an increase in the Central Bank rate by 75-100 points is almost inevitable. What's happened An increase in the Central Bank's rate by 100 points at once in a week is becoming more and more likely. Inflation in November in Russia set another record - it amounted to 8.4% in annual terms, this is the maximum since January 2016.

Coffee futures have reached ten-year highs as traders try to guarantee themselves stocks in the face of physical shortages caused by a combination of factors, writes the FT. Arabica wholesale has almost doubled in price since the beginning of the year. Coffee beans on ICE are now $2.5 a pound. The market was hit at the same time by a poor harvest due to a catastrophic drought and frost in Brazil and a shortage of containers combined with high freight.

Russian President Vladimir Putin at a press conference following the talks with the Prime Minister of Greece said that the most important thing in yesterday's talks with US President Joe Biden was "the opportunity to continue the dialogue." Putin called the conversation with Biden "open, substantive and constructive" and expressed the hope that the American side would appreciate it in the same way.

Pfizer and BioNTech today released the first preliminary data from a laboratory study on the effectiveness of their vaccine against the omicron strain. To neutralize a new strain of coronavirus, not two, but three doses of the drug are needed, writes the WSJ. The blood plasma of people who received two doses of the vaccine showed 25 times lower levels of neutralizing antibodies to omicron than to the original version of the coronavirus, the study said.

The new omicron strain seems to have thrown the world back two years, to the very beginning of the pandemic. There is no reliable data on the infectiousness and lethality of the strain yet, but the news about the spread of omicron is forcing governments to tighten restrictions primarily for travelers - just like in the winter of 2020. The Bell figured out what is happening with overseas tours and whether it is safe to arrange travel now. What's happening?

The Japanese Iida Group will acquire a 75% stake in RFP Group, a timber company controlled by Roman Abramovich. In five years, the investor must ensure a two-fold increase in the total volume of timber processing of the Russian holding, writes RBC. The total value of the transaction between Iida Group and RFP, the largest timber company in the Far East, will be about $525 million. After the transaction, the shares of the existing shareholders of the Russian holding will be diluted.

Bills on QR codes will most likely pass the State Duma, but their further fate will depend on the indicators of herd immunity and vaccination, RBC writes , citing sources in the State Duma and the presidential administration. The first reading of the bills is scheduled for December 16, and the regions must submit their comments by December 14.

Roskomnadzor has blocked the website of the anonymous Tor browser in Russia, which allows you to bypass blocking, reports . Forbes A representative of Roskomnadzor told the publication that the agency had restricted access to the Tor website. The torproject.org website was included in the Unified Register of Prohibited Information based on a court decision.

Two-hour talks between Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden, from which the markets expected the tension around Ukraine to ease, did not bring concrete official results. But from the comments after the video call, it seems that the Russian side is satisfied with its results. What's happened Negotiations between Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden via a closed video link lasted about two hours and ended at about 20:00 Moscow time. The alignment before the conversation looked like a dead end.

In St. Petersburg, the owner of Rive Gauche, also a co-owner of the once largest Russian Internet retailer Ulmart, August Meyer, was detained. He is suspected of fraud, found out . Kommersant According to Kommersant, the security forces detained August Meyer and his wife Inna Meyer (she is a business partner). Both are suspected of stealing from Sberbank 2.3 billion rubles received for the development of Ulmart shortly before the collapse of the company.

Olaf Scholz officially became the new Chancellor of Germany after a vote in the Bundestag. Scholz was officially elected Chancellor of Germany following a vote in the German Bundestag. The Chancellor is elected by secret ballot without debate. To win in the first round, a candidate needs an absolute majority of votes. This means that in the current Bundestag of Germany, at least 369 out of 736 deputies should have voted for. Scholz received 395 votes.