Avito extends its Deal Protection escrow to five online service categ…

At its October 27 plenary session the State Duma reviewed 56 bills: 11 passed in the first reading, one in the second and one in the third. The bill adopted in both the second and third readings sets uniform legal foundations for the registration, use and maintenance of amusement rides: regional technical supervision bodies will register rides and issue a certificate and registration plate, data will go into a unified federal information system, technical inspection will be required at least once a year within no more than 21 working days, and operation of unregistered, uninspected or end-of-life rides is prohibited. The law takes effect on March 1, 2027. Among the bills passed in the first reading is administrative liability for non-compliance with decisions of regional heads or operational headquarters: fines of 3,000–5,000 roubles for citizens, 30,000–50,000 roubles or disqualification for one to three years for officials, and 300,000–1 million roubles or suspension of activity for up to 90 days for legal entities.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on October 27, during a meeting with St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov, that Belarus is ready to return to the Soviet-era practice of supplying goods to a number of Russian regions and major cities. The statement was made at the meeting and distributed by the BelTA news agency.

The Parliamentary Gazette reports that Russia has imposed an entry ban on seven representatives of British defence industry companies. The page reviewed did not name the individuals, their companies, or the legal basis for the ban.

Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said Vladimir Putin will hold five bilateral contacts on the sidelines of the eighth Gas Exporting Countries Forum summit: with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the President of Mozambique and Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, plus a late-evening meeting with Libyan Presidential Council Chairman Mohammed al-Menfi. Ushakov noted further meetings are scheduled after the summit concludes.

Vladimir Putin said on October 27 in Moscow, meeting Libyan Presidential Council Chairman Mohammed al-Menfi, that Libya remains a long-standing Russian partner in North Africa despite the difficult international situation. 'We are glad to see you again and to host you in Moscow,' the Russian leader said.

South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, asked by ruling-party lawmaker Song Seok-joon whether the current situation amounts to a diplomatic conflict almost equivalent to a severance of relations, said: 'If escalation continues, I believe that possibility also exists.' The report cites the Newsis agency. Gazeta.Ru recalls that on October 20 Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko said Moscow welcomes any steps by Seoul to normalise relations, and South Korea's foreign ministry decided the same day to withdraw part of its embassy staff in Ukraine.

Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said on October 27, commenting on the call by Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre to Vladimir Putin, that it is very important for Russia that its neighbours Finland and Norway have decided to start a dialogue.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on the sidelines of the GECF summit that about 15% of global trade is supplied by Russian gas; Russia holds the world's largest gas reserves and ranks second in output, and is ready to contribute to energy security and meet growing global demand. He cited the development of gas infrastructure, expanded cooperation with Asia-Pacific countries and LNG technologies. The report also quotes Putin at the summit: global gas consumption rose 1.2% last year to 4.2 trillion cubic metres, with annual world demand expected to grow to 5.5 trillion cubic metres.

Kommersant reports that the MOEX index moved above 2,500 points on the back of foreign-policy news, with investors turning their attention to the negotiations. The page reviewed did not give the exact closing value or the size of the gain.

Gazeta.Ru, citing a report, says Sber helped more than 94,000 families settle their debts in the third quarter of 2026. The total debt amount and the specific mechanisms were not given on the page reviewed.

Roskomnadzor's press service said the agency did not put forward an initiative to bar under-14s from the internet or require social networks to verify age: 'The agency did not come forward with such an initiative. We consider it necessary to provide social network users with content appropriate to their age.' According to the report, Nina Ostanina, chair of the State Duma committee on family, women and children, at the same meeting listed the main obstacles to protecting children online as fragmentation of responsibility, speed of response, insufficient involvement of family and school, and jurisdictional boundaries, adding that bans and blocks alone will not solve the problem and that relying solely on prohibitions can backfire.

Rossiyskaya Gazeta reports that Moscow has launched whitelists of websites and online services. The page reviewed did not list which resources are covered, the duration, or how the mechanism is applied.

Cleanup continues in Bryansk's Sovetsky district after an overnight drone strike. Six people were injured, three apartment buildings on Romashina and Lyubeznogo streets were damaged along with 11 cars, and more than 150 volunteers arrived to help. The priority is restoring the thermal envelope of residential buildings, with construction firms, the BARS-Bryansk unit and housing management companies involved. Prosecutors and investigators are on site, and residents were told to contact the Sovetsky interdistrict investigative department to file damage reports.

Russia's Defence Ministry said Ukrainian forces launched more than 70 fixed-wing drones at Russian regions. According to the ministry, the drones were intercepted and destroyed over Belgorod, Bryansk, Kaluga, Kursk, Oryol and Tula regions as well as the Moscow region, with air defences shooting down 71 drones between 08:00 and 20:00 Moscow time. The report also notes that in Shebekino, Belgorod region, a drone detonated in the courtyard of an apartment building and an injured man was taken to hospital with shrapnel wounds to the thigh.

Interfax reports that Sochi airport suspended operations. The reason for the suspension and the resumption time were not given on the page reviewed.

Russia's AGR holding and China's Defetoo have unveiled a new domestic car brand, Votour. According to images published on the brand's website, the line-up will include three crossover ranges — small, medium and large classes, designated V, T and R; the vehicles in the photos are covered by protective wraps. The report stresses that official information on the model range, production plans and sales start dates has not yet been disclosed. AGR and Defetoo already operate the Tenet, Tenet Plus, Jeland and Esteo brands, with assembly at facilities in St Petersburg and Kaluga.

Gazeta.Ru, citing a report, says Russian refineries increased crude oil processing in the second half of October. Concrete volumes and the calculation methodology were not given on the page reviewed.

Interfax reports that English striker Kane has won the Ballon d'Or, its headline describing him as the first English winner in 25 years. Rossiyskaya Gazeta, reporting the same day, headlined that a Bayern Munich player had won the award for the first time in 45 years. Vote counts and ceremony details were not given on the pages reviewed.

Rossiyskaya Gazeta reports that AI company Anthropic warned about catastrophic risks of artificial intelligence to humanity ahead of its IPO. The specific wording of the risks and details of the offering documents were not given on the page reviewed.

Rossiyskaya Gazeta reports that a coronavirus strain is spreading in several countries; the article frames it as more contagious but unlikely to be more dangerous. The strain's name, the list of countries and concrete figures were not given on the page reviewed.

Avito's services arm said it extended Deal Protection, its escrow-style settlement tool, to five new categories: CRM programming and setup, website and app development, marketplace product infographics, AI solutions, and neural-network content generation. Under the mechanism, the customer's money is reserved on a dedicated account and released to the contractor once the result is accepted. Avito's own figures: 75% of online buyers consider the availability of safety tools when choosing a contractor, and for 48% this factor is decisive; 32% would walk away from a deal without clear protection mechanisms, and 16% are unwilling to order services online without guarantees at all. The company adds that 86% of potential users in the pilot categories support the format, and contractor satisfaction after a first successful deal runs at 92—100%. The same update introduced portfolio link previews in chat, top-up without placing a new order, timers with a one-day reminder at each stage, and cancellation by the customer if the contractor misses the deadline. The article does not say whether the service is open to Chinese sellers or covers cross-border goods transactions.

Mikhail Petrov, head of the fulfilment product line at logistics operator PEK, told Lenta.ru that mass returns on marketplaces sharply raise delivery costs for sellers, which ultimately ends in higher prices for consumers. He estimates that diverted working capital, more expensive reverse logistics and the cost of consolidating returns in-house could push goods prices up 8—12% over 2026 from this factor alone. His assumption is that customers buy out only 30% of what they order. The example given is a 2,000-ruble shirt: the buyer also pays for two or three fittings by other people, including those who order ten shirts and buy none. According to Petrov, the rise in return costs depends on platform rules, volume, category, timing and the seller's model — FBO, FBS or DBS — and mounting logistics costs threaten the stability of each scheme. He also points to longer freezing of working capital, which often requires emergency borrowing at high rates, and to the loss of resaleable condition after fitting, which the seller has to cover from other goods. The article adds that Centre for Strategic Research head Pavel Smelov said earlier, on 27 September, that the scale of returns needs attention and pointed to targeted adjustments in consumer protection law. The article gives no return rates for specific platforms and makes no separate assessment for Chinese sellers.

Kommersant, citing an interview that Vladimir Panov, Rosatom's director for the Northern Sea Route and the Arctic, gave to Interfax, reports that preparations for regular eastbound sailings along the Northern Sea Route are in their final stage. He says another nuclear icebreaker, Chukotka, is due to enter service early next year, taking the fleet to nine nuclear icebreakers; the route is one step away from regular eastbound shipping and therefore from year-round operation, which Rosatom expects to happen in early 2027, when one of Russia's largest shippers starts regular shipments of its products to Asia. He adds that the focus now extends beyond the route itself to building a Trans-Arctic transport corridor that would also include connected inland waterways, railways and other transport infrastructure. The newspaper additionally cites Reuters data: oil exports via the route over the summer-autumn navigation season exceeded last year's full-year result by almost 50%, reaching 20 million barrels (2.75 million tonnes) against 13 million barrels a year earlier, and could add another 5—10 million barrels (0.69—1.37 million tonnes) before the season closes. Experts quoted in the piece name vessel ice-class availability, changeable ice conditions and pilotage costs as the main constraints on growth. The text does not assess the impact on e-commerce freight rates and does not mention routes to China.

According to the Federal Customs Service, officers at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport stopped a 28-year-old woman arriving from Istanbul during a spot check in the green channel. Her luggage contained three Hermes and Chanel bags, two pairs of Chanel shoes, and items from Brunello Cucinelli, Yves Saint Laurent, Miu Miu and Schiaparelli — 36 branded items in total. An examination confirmed they were genuine and valued them at more than 22 million rubles. The woman said the items were her own property and gifts. According to customs, unpaid customs payments exceed 6 million rubles. The service says it is deciding whether to open a criminal case for evasion of customs payments; the publication cites a possible penalty of up to two years' deprivation of liberty or a fine of up to 500,000 rubles. It also recalls an earlier case in which a Russian man flying in from Dubai with luxury watches was fined several million rubles. The text does not explain any link to cross-border e-commerce channels and does not state duty-free allowances for personal items.

Compared with the Civic Chamber proposal reported on 19 October, what is new here is the formal opinion of the State Duma budget and tax committee. Recommending the bill pass its first reading, the committee reviewed the government's Tax Code amendments submitted with the budget package on 30 September (bill No. 617-9) and proposed three points for discussion before the second reading: clarifying the category of persons recognised as VAT payers in connection with the import of e-commerce goods into Russia; clarifying how the VAT base is determined for such imported e-commerce goods; and clarifying the applicable VAT rate, including how price is stated — with VAT and excise amounts itemised or not. The bill is scheduled for its first reading at a Duma plenary session on 29 October. The report restates the established design: from 2027, individuals buying e-commerce goods from third countries would pay VAT at 22%, remitted by electronic trading platforms acting as tax agents, with additional budget revenue estimated at about 75 billion rubles a year according to the explanatory note. The committee opinion also recalls the Civic Chamber's proposal, made in its opinion on the 2027—2029 draft budget, to regulate VAT refunds when goods bought from foreign online stores and marketplaces are returned; the chamber views the VAT mechanism itself positively but warns that uncertainty could impose extra costs on consumers and create inconsistency in enforcement. The publication gives no administrative detail, does not assess the impact on third-country sellers, and applicability to Chinese sellers remains unconfirmed.

Kommersant obtained a letter in which Alexander Kalinin, head of the Opora Rossii SME association, sent the Finance Ministry and the State Duma his comments on the government's Tax Code amendments submitted with the budget package. The proposals include keeping 13—15% rates on bank deposit interest and capping the maximum dividend rate at 18% instead of the government's proposed 22%; replacing higher tax fines with warnings for minor violations — the letter cites a fine for late notice of the creation of a separate subdivision rising from 200 to 121,000 rubles; and extending the freeze of the revenue threshold that triggers VAT liability to the patent system. In the summer the government proposed fixing the simplified-system threshold at 20 million rubles until the end of 2029 instead of lowering it to 15 million in 2027 and 10 million in 2028. The letter stresses that for sole traders on the patent system, crossing the threshold does not merely create a VAT obligation: it means losing the right to use the patent from the start of the tax period and recalculating liabilities under another regime, which with thin margins can lead to losses and closure. The letter also covers tying IT companies' reduced profit-tax rate to annual financial statement deadlines, retaining the regional investment tax deduction for food and beverage producers while raising the federal part from 3% to 5%, and preserving the temporary penalty-interest procedure for SMEs — under the bill, from 2027 penalties accrue at 1/300 of the key rate for the first 30 calendar days and 1/150 thereafter, with no return to the first rate from day 91. The Finance Ministry told the paper it is reviewing proposals from agencies and business and will include those deemed appropriate in second-reading amendments, stressing the changes are meant to unify conditions for taxing passive income with earned income. The final text and entry-into-force dates are not given, applicability to foreign sellers is not stated, and applicability to Chinese sellers remains unconfirmed.

Vedomosti reviewed letters in which Alexander Kalinin, head of the Opora Rossii SME association, wrote on 22 October to Andrei Makarov, chairman of the State Duma budget and tax committee, and to the Finance Ministry, proposing that the Tax Code keep its explicit ban on the Federal Tax Service issuing normative legal acts in the field of taxation. The trigger is the Finance Ministry's early-October package of Tax Code amendments, which among other things proposes lifting a restriction that has stood for more than 20 years; normative acts are rules binding on an indefinite range of persons. The association argues that deleting this provision from Article 4 of the Tax Code could undermine the stability of the legal order, weaken taxpayer guarantees and create risks of hidden rule-making, and calls for keeping the established division of powers between the Finance Ministry and the tax service. The publication includes no Finance Ministry answer to the proposal and no timetable for the amendments; what is confirmed is the existence of concern on the business side, not any adopted decision.

Compared with the set effective 27 October that we reported on 26 October, what is new here is that the Bank of Russia has published the next set: querying the CBR official rate interface with the request date 28 October 2026 returns a set with @Date=28.10.2026 — USD 80.5307, EUR 90.0977 and CNY 12.0677 rubles, with a nominal value of 1 for all three. Interfax's same-day comparison says the central bank raised the dollar rate by 3.98 kopecks to 80.5307 rubles and the euro rate by 0.42 kopecks to 90.0977 rubles. During the coverage day itself (27 October), the set with interface date 27.10.2026 was in effect: USD 80.4909, EUR 90.0935, CNY 12.0680 rubles. The official rate interface does not return a publication time, so this item is recorded as MSK --:--. The set takes effect from 28 October.

Interfax reports that on Tuesday the yuan closed slightly lower on the Moscow Exchange and the ruble firmed a touch, despite falling oil. At 19:00 Moscow time the Chinese currency stood at 12.081 rubles, 0.45 kopecks below the previous session's close. According to the report, support came from expectations of progress in settling the Ukraine conflict and from residual exporter demand ahead of Wednesday 28 October payments of personal income tax, social insurance contributions, mineral extraction tax, VAT, excises, profit tax and the oil and gas additional income tax. Andrei Smirnov, a stock market expert at BCS, told the agency that the ruble has paused its strengthening this week near round levels of 80 per dollar, 90 per euro and 12 per yuan; the main support from the tax period is behind it and FX supply is gradually declining, though export revenue remains high. In the short term he expects consolidation at 80—82 per dollar, 89—91 per euro and 12—12.25 per yuan. The same report notes that because daily direct calculation of the euro rate against the ruble has lost representativeness amid low turnover in the pair, the Bank of Russia has since 8 June set the official euro rate from the ruble/dollar rate and the ECB's euro/dollar rate as of 15:30 Moscow time on the current business day. The article provides no calculation of settlement costs for Chinese sellers.

Kommersant, citing Focus Technologies, reports that Russia's Mall Index (visitors per 1,000 square metres of retail space) fell 2.8% year on year in January—September 2026. The decline is sharper in the largest cities: Moscow lost 2.9% year on year and St Petersburg 4.1%. Strategy Partners and Sber2B record a 9% year-on-year drop in visits to key Moscow shopping centres over nine months, with aggregate spending down 5%; the retail real estate and experts association estimates the nationwide decline in mall traffic at 3—5%. Focus Technologies says the deepest fall within the three quarters came in June—July, 4.7—5% below last year, narrowing to 1.8% in August and 2.4% in September. Mikhail Vasilyev, head of research and consulting at the firm, believes offline retail in August—September may have been supported by longer delivery times for goods to order pickup points. Pavel Lyulin, co-chair of the association, attributes the decline to more rational consumer behaviour: people watch spending more closely, make fewer impulse purchases, compare prices and postpone buying; he notes Moscow traffic was back at last year's level at the end of September but started falling again in October. NF Group regional director Yevgenia Khakberdieva says falling footfall hits turnover above all in impulse-demand segments, and independent expert Marina Tolstosheyeva says purchase activity is falling most visibly in clothing and footwear and in home and renovation goods. Nikoliers forecasts that net absorption of retail space in Moscow and the Moscow region will turn negative this year for the first time since 2022. Those interviewed expect November sale-season traffic to be flat or below last year. The article provides no comparable data for online channels.