UrBC, Moscow, July 17, 2018. The 2% increase in the value-added tax (from 18% up to 20%) is going to affect 70% of consumer goods prices, the Bank of Russia’s Research & Forecast Department’s data analysis findings indicate. It is therefore believed that consumer prices will rise 0.8% to 1.25% once the VAT increase comes into effect. The overall inflation rate is expected to speed up over 4% as a result. The State Duma is currently considering rising the VAT to 20%. Under the terms of the draft bill under processing, the increase should come into force on January 1, 2019. The bill has

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, July 17, 2018. Yekaterinburg got fewer visitors during the World Cup 2018 days than any other championship-hosting city in Russia, Tourstat reports. The city stadiums got 31,359 supporters per game on average. 125,437 people bought tickets for the four games held in Yekaterinburg altogether. None of these games were above the group phase, however. Predictably, Moscow comes No.1 as the most-visited World Cup 2018 location (787,000 visitors all in all and 63,900 supporters per game on average). Next comes Saint Petersburg (448,600/64,100), followed by Sochi

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, July 17, 2018. Ural Airlines are launching their annual summer sale on July 16-29, 2018, the air carrier’s press service reports. ‘If you didn’t get a chance to travel during the high season, you can still enjoy the late summer vacation: a September trip will be up to 30% cheaper and give you an opportunity to enjoy exciting guided tours, beach activities, or long walks,’ the press service says. Available at a discount are the following flights: from Yekaterinburg to Simferopol, Sochi, Krasnodar, Anapa, Kaliningrad, Mineralnye Vody, Barcelona, Burgas, Larnaca, Harbin,

UrBC, Moscow, July 17, 2018. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced at the end of the World Championship 2018 that foreign nationals bearing Fan IDs might be allowed multiple entry to Russia until the end of the year, the Kremlin’s website states. ‘I think we can do the following: the international football supporters who had their authorized Fan IDs issued to them could be allowed to enter the Russian Federation with no visa and as many times as they like unit the end of the year. I repeat, no visa would be necessary. I hope they will use this opportunity, quite a few of them, in any

UrBC, Yekaterinburg, July 17, 2018. Ural Airlines issued a performance report for its Innoprom Exhibition days. During the event’s four days, visitors to the airline’s stand ate 50 kg of on-board candy, received 20,000 inflatable toy planes as gifts, and were given 18,000 postcards with images of Airbus A320 and views of cities the airline flies to on them. According to the airline’s press service, the visitors were particularly impressed with the unusual 3D sky-backdrop photo opportunities; the pictures could get uploaded onto one’s smartphone and emailed to the end user immediately. More