Yandex denies data-center insurance lapse, says policies cover terror…

At a meeting at the auxiliary command post of the Joint Group of Forces, Vladimir Putin said massive and group strikes on the enemy's defense industry and logistics centers must continue. He said Russian strikes on Ukraine's defense industry and infrastructure facilities are a response to Kyiv's strikes on Russian industrial and energy facilities. At the same meeting he said the tempo of the Russian army's advance in the special military operation zone has increased and troops are attacking along the entire line of the front.

At a meeting with military officials, Vladimir Putin said the Lugansk People's Republic is fully under the control of Russian forces.

According to Interfax, a Moscow court arrested Yelena Krotova, head of the Protect Children from Drugs and Alcohol charity foundation. Kommersant reports the case concerns recruitment of followers of the Church of Scientology, designated an undesirable organization in Russia, under the guise of anti-drug work; the case was opened under the article on organizing the activity of an undesirable organization, with searches in Moscow, St Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Kaliningrad and Ufa, and seizure of dietary supplements and writings of church founder Ron Hubbard.

RIA Novosti reports that the conclusions adopted by the EU summit in Brussels expressed regret over the US decision to temporarily lift sanctions on Russian diesel fuel. The document states that the European Council expresses regret over the decision of the United States to temporarily lift sanctions on Russian diesel. The report notes that the presidents of Russia and the United States reached an agreement on 9 October on supplies of Russian diesel to the world market.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said any act of armed aggression by NATO against the Kaliningrad region would draw a response using all means available to Russia; she described the response as literally scorching and said the war would be very short. She said Moscow finds it hard to believe NATO statements that a blockade of the region is not being prepared, and said the Polish General Staff has drawn up operational plans for preemptive high-precision strikes on the region if war with Russia becomes inevitable. The ministry's reply to media was published on its website.

US President Donald Trump said he does not know whether Vladimir Putin will attend the G20 summit, but would be glad to see him there.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in an interview on the sidelines of the Russian Energy Week forum that the shortfall of motor gasoline on the domestic market is about 5%. He said the situation remains tense, although it has been improving in recent weeks.

According to Interfax, Russian stocks rose on Friday amid US President Donald Trump's statements on the Ukraine conflict, expectations of Russian diesel exports to the United States and higher oil prices. The MOEX index closed the main session at 2,426.09 points (+1.65%), a closing high since 18 June; the RTS index ended at 914.0 points (+1.8%). Among the gainers were Polyus (+6%), VK (+4.1%) and Novatek (+4%).

Labour Minister Anton Kotyakov said at a State Duma budget and taxes committee meeting that from 1 January 2027 Russia's minimum wage will rise to 28,935 rubles; the measure takes effect after legislative approval. Kommersant adds that the 2026 minimum wage is 27,093 rubles and that, under President Vladimir Putin's instruction, it should reach 35,000 rubles by 2030.

The interregional directorate of Rospotrebnadzor for St Petersburg and the Leningrad Region reported that five people with suspected monkeypox have been hospitalized and are under medical observation, and a disinfection order has been issued. The agency said specialists immediately began a sanitary-epidemiological investigation after receiving information about a possible case, organized a full set of anti-epidemic measures, and are identifying contacts. Lenta.ru in its 18:38 report wrote of four people hospitalized.

According to Interfax, benefits and payments to Moscow residents will be indexed by 4.3% from 1 January.

According to Interfax, losses from remote (telecom and online) fraud in Moscow over the first nine months of the year reached 33 billion rubles.

Rosaviatsiya reported temporary restrictions on the arrival and departure of aircraft at Vnukovo, Domodedovo and Zhukovsky (Ramenskoye) airports, saying the restrictions are necessary to ensure flight safety. Interfax reported that the airports were temporarily closed and resumed coordinated operations from 22:53.

According to Interfax, five people were injured when a drone attacked a bus in Shebekino, Belgorod region.

According to Kommersant, a fire broke out at an industrial facility in the Surgut district of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug after a drone strike, as reported by region governor Ruslan Kukharuk. Emergency services are working at the site, specialists are assessing the scale and nature of the damage, and no casualties have been reported. The drone danger regime was declared twice in the region during the day, at about 09:50 and at 13:20 Moscow time.

According to Kommersant citing Turkish media, the death toll from the Istanbul floods has risen to four: rescuers found under a bridge in the worst-flooded district the body of 66-year-old local resident Turgut Dursun, who had been listed as missing, while three people are still being searched for. The report says 242 mm of rain fell in Beykoz (27 km from Istanbul) on 14–15 October, the highest figure since 1985, and schools were closed in six Turkish provinces. Interfax reported that more than 3,057 people were evacuated in Istanbul.

According to Interfax, Rosatom head Alexey Likhachev said shipments along the Northern Sea Route this year will exceed 40 million tonnes.

According to Kommersant, biometric boarding for Sapsan trains will become available in the first half of 2027. Interfax also reported that the service will launch in the first half of 2027.

According to Kommersant, Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev reached the semifinals of the Shanghai Masters. Interfax published a report on the same subject.

According to Kommersant, a pterosaur tooth about 100 million years old has been found in the Kursk region.

Vedomosti reported, citing sources, that part of Yandex infrastructure was insured with Sogaz and Ingosstrakh, but coverage of terrorist risks had expired by the time of the attacks and was not renewed in time. Yandex press office told RBC that this information is untrue: the company uses various types of insurance to protect assets and manage risks, and its policies cover, among other things, terrorist attacks; it does not disclose coverage details or contract terms. Between 8 and 11 October, Yandex data centers in the Ryazan region, Kaluga and Vladimir were damaged in drone attacks.

RBC analysed notices published by Russian companies on their own official channels between 8 and 14 October and found that reports of online-system failures came most often from delivery, e-commerce and retail companies. On 11 October, retail chains M.Video, Magnit, Lenta and Fix Price, services Auto.ru and Flowwow, and Yandex-owned delivery services Yandex Eda, Yandex Lavka, Delivery and the Yandex Market marketplace all reported technical problems; the Lamoda mobile app that day said order placement and delivery were unavailable, which RBC verified itself. On 12 October, Apteka.ru said its website was undergoing maintenance. Reports also came from transport and logistics, media and entertainment, fintech, business cloud platforms and travel. On 14 October, instalment service Mokka told RBC it was restoring its system after "large-scale technical failures caused by the unavailability of a provider".

Mikhail Petrov, fulfilment product director (responsible for e-commerce delivery) at logistics operator PEK, told Lenta.ru that before the New Year holidays the volume of parcels delivered from China to Russia may grow two- to threefold, pushing December shipping rates 20-40% above September. As of 14 October, the cost of a full truckload from a Beijing warehouse to a Moscow site had already risen 10-15% year on year, to USD 14,400-15,600. He named lack of logistics capacity as the main barrier: by mid-October container transshipment from sea to rail in the Far East had stretched from 7-10 days to 10-14 days, and sea operator tariffs rose 5% versus September. Demand for road delivery, the most predictable in terms of timing, has already increased; a trip takes 15-20 days on average depending on the region. An earlier ROCIT study found that 65% of Russian buyers purchase from Chinese sellers when they cannot find an item from domestic companies, and 80% are guided by lower cost.

The Volga-Dnepr Group said cargo airline Atran has resumed commercial operations, operating a Moscow-Mirny flight on Friday. The flight used a Boeing 737-400SF (RA-73854) that had previously been placed in storage and underwent C-check maintenance. The aircraft can carry cargo of up to 18 tonnes, including industrial equipment, components, consumer goods and e-commerce goods. Rosaviatsiya suspended Atran operator certificate in 2025 at the carrier own request; the certificate was restored at the end of September. The company did not disclose flight frequency or rates.

The Moscow transport department press office told Interfax that from 15 October passing a test on traffic rules and the Unified Standard became a mandatory condition for couriers to be admitted to orders. In the voluntary period from 30 September to 14 October, the vast majority of active couriers had already passed the test in advance and received credit valid for a year ahead. Couriers who have not passed the mandatory check are temporarily moved to "Inactive" status and are not admitted to shifts; they can retake the test at any time, and access to orders is restored immediately after a successful answer. About 135,000 couriers work in Moscow. Testing runs on the KIS ART system and covers rules for cycling and personal mobility devices, including speed limits and mandatory dismounting at pedestrian crossings, as well as Unified Standard requirements from shift preparation and vehicle checks to appearance, equipment and service etiquette. At least 80% of questions must be answered correctly; the number of attempts is unlimited, but after three failed attempts the system sends the courier back to theory study.

The Ministry of Digital Development has drafted a government resolution under which, from 1 January 2028, spending on development, purchase and updating of domestic software would be counted when confirming production of Russian industrial products, including Russian PLM solutions used for product design, process modelling and documentation; the spending would count toward the Ministry of Industry and Trade R&D score. The draft has been published on the draft regulations portal. The ministry says the main goal is to speed up the Russian auto industry transition from foreign PLM platforms to domestic digital solutions. The document contains no direct application to foreign sellers.

The RWB press office told Interfax that Wildberries recorded rising demand for external storage in the first half of October: from 1 to 14 October, flash drive sales in unit terms doubled and external hard disk sales rose 73% versus the same period of September. Most often bought are 1TB or 64GB flash drives; among hard disks the most popular models are 1TB and 2TB, with 500GB disks also very popular. Sales of recordable DVDs also doubled, although in total volumes they are many times smaller than flash drives and hard disks. No reason for the growth was given.

RBC, citing Izvestia: against a backdrop of falling alcohol sales, rising prices and tighter regional restrictions, federal chains Krasnoe & Beloe, Bristol, VINLAB and Aromatny Mir are moving from expansion to a review of development strategy and a focus on store efficiency. The decline is more visible in the non-chain segment, where the number of such outlets fell by almost 8% over the year. As of end-September, VINLAB had 2,222 stores, three fewer than at end-June — the first net reduction in total outlets since at least 2021 and, according to the paper, possibly the only one since the chain founded. At end-June, Krasnoe & Beloe and Bristol (both part of Mercury Retail Holding) together had 28,253 stores, five more than at end-December 2025; in Q1 they closed 18 more stores than they opened, and in Q2 they opened 13. Aromatny Mir had 984 stores at end-August, 3.1% fewer than a year earlier. Rosalkogoltabakkontrol data show 613.5 million decalitres of alcohol sold in January-August, 2% less than in the same period of 2025. Among large specialist retailers, only Simple Group is still expanding, describing it as "more targeted expansion".

The Bank of Russia official rate interface shows that, from 17 October, the official rates are: USD 83.6177 rubles, EUR 93.7187 rubles, CNY 12.4950 rubles, per 1 unit of foreign currency. Compared with the set in effect on 16 October (83.7600, 93.7693, 12.4991), these are lower by 0.1423, 0.0506 and 0.0041 rubles respectively. The interface returns only the date the rate applies, not a publication time, so the publication time is recorded as "MSK --:--".

Interfax reported that at 19:00 Moscow time on Friday the yuan on the Moscow Exchange stood at 12.46 rubles, 2.25 kopecks below the previous session close, with the ruble firming slightly before the weekend. The central bank lowered its official dollar rate from 17 October by 14.23 kopecks to 83.6177 rubles per USD and cut the euro rate by 5.06 kopecks to 93.7187 rubles per EUR. Because daily direct calculation of the euro-ruble rate from actual conversion operations has lost representativeness due to low turnover in the ruble/euro pair, the Bank of Russia changed its method: since 8 June the rate is derived from the dollar-ruble rate and the ECB euro-dollar rate as of 15:30 Moscow time on the current business day. Gazprombank chief economist Pavel Biryukov told Interfax that early in the week the ruble strengthened 1.6% to 12.5 rubles per yuan and stayed there through the end of the week on reduced trading volumes; possible drivers included news of potential Russian diesel exports and expectations of higher exporter currency sales as September Russian export oil prices rose 40% versus August to USD 92.1 per barrel (Economic Development Ministry data), plus higher quarterly tax payments.

In a regional price review published on 16 October, the Bank of Russia said prices rose moderately in most regions in September. Nationwide, food prices were unchanged over the month: new-harvest vegetables and fruits continued to get cheaper; sugar fell as supply expanded with the start of sugar beet processing; eggs rose noticeably on seasonal demand; some cereals and fish products rose as supply fell. Non-food prices rose moderately across regions; electronics prices rose because of the weaker ruble and higher prices for components on the world market. Service prices rose markedly in most regions, education costs rose more than usual, and domestic tourism continued to get cheaper. Fuel kept rising but much more slowly than in June-July and unevenly across regions — in about a third of them prices fell or were unchanged.

First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov told Interfax that industrial exports from EAEU member states to Indonesia could rise by at least a quarter once the free trade agreement between Indonesia and the EAEU takes effect; Indonesia would also gain the opportunity to substantially increase industrial supplies to the EAEU, and preconditions would be created for joint production chains and localisation. He said Indonesia accounts for almost a quarter of Russian trade with South-East Asian countries, second only to Vietnam, with bilateral trade at USD 5 billion in 2025. The main Russian export drivers are metals including aluminium, potash fertilisers, various equipment and coal. Earlier reports said the FTA is expected to enter into force before the end of this year. The material does not address effects on consumer categories.