A Russian report said that the refusal to supply Russian energy resources could lead to higher prices to new levels, which would exacerbate the inflation crisis in European markets, and affect the standard of living of citizens.

In the report published by the Russian daily Izvestia, writer Oksana Belkina says that Europe is currently suffering from record inflation levels of 8.1%, as sanctions against Moscow plunged these countries into a crisis after the cost of energy rose and the cost of other goods increased with it.

And she adds - quoting economists - that this is only the beginning, and after the sixth package of European sanctions, which includes a partial rejection of Russian oil, the inflation spiral could get out of control.

Everything became more expensive

According to preliminary data from the European Statistics Office (Eurostat), annual inflation levels in 19 European countries reached 8.1% in May, which is the seventh record in a row, after it had jumped to 7.4% in April.

The main reason - according to the writer - is the inflation of energy prices, which amounted to 39.2% in May and 37.5% in April. The price of fuel jumped by 157% compared to last year, while the price of gas doubled more than 4 times, in addition to Sharp rise in food prices.

The writer notes that the countries most affected by this crisis are Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, which witnessed a sharp rise in prices.

As for the largest economies of the Union, Germany and France, the inflation rate reached 8.7% and 5.2%, respectively.


And it quoted Anton Prokudin, a Russian economist at the Ingostrach Investment Corporation, as saying, "The rise in gas prices later leads to an increase in household gas and electricity tariffs for consumers. As for the increase in the price of oil, after a while it leads to an increase in transportation costs. While the rise in grain prices - which began to take a trend upwards since February - later translated into inflation in the prices of meat and grain derivatives.

inflation tsunami

According to the writer, experts point out that the current economic situation in the European Union seems catastrophic, and the current numbers are only the beginning of an inflation tsunami in consumer markets.

Economist Peter Zabortsev was quoted as saying, "There is an indicator that is always described as an early warning sign of consumer price inflation. This indicator is the cost of production, and it has reached huge levels in the European region, rising by 36.8% in one year."


The citizen pays the price

At the end of May, Europe had imposed the sixth package of sanctions against Moscow, which included a partial abstention from importing Russian oil.

In the face of these measures - says the writer - fuel prices have witnessed a new rise, and it seems that the rejection of Russian oil will lead to a shortage of energy resources in the countries of the European Union, and thus prices will push towards new levels.

For example, a barrel of Brent, which is now sold at $120, will increase in price by $30.

The writer adds that this blockade may lead to an increase in the price of a barrel of oil in general at a rate between 15 and 20 dollars (currently prices are above 120 dollars a barrel), although these sanctions have been postponed to enter into force until the first of next December, which is the period of low demand. .

And she considered that it is the simple citizen who will pay the price for the political decisions of the European leadership, as the largest economy of the Union is already suffering from the cost of living crisis, so that some people are forced to choose between buying food or providing heating.

The writer believes that all prices will rise, whether it comes to fuel, food, clothes, rent, public services and health care.


And it quoted Sergei Chernikov, a professor at the Faculty of Economics in Russia, who expected that Europe would witness - during the next 18 months - the same crisis that Russia witnessed in the early nineties, when the phenomenon of poverty worsened among a large proportion of the population, and many support and social care mechanisms were abolished, and "it will become Some simple habits, such as drinking a glass of milk in the morning, are a sign of wealth."

worst nightmares

The writer says: If the European Union will reject Russian oil, politicians will face the worst nightmare related to stagflation and inflation, which is what the American Oil Price website warned of, which confirmed that more than 70 investors expect an economic storm caused by sanctions against Russia.

This website stated that "energy prices are witnessing a skyrocketing rise... and commodity markets are also suffering from the same phenomenon, and what is more dangerous than that is that global oil reserves are about to decline."

The writer comments: Despite all these economic fears and bleak expectations, the European Union intends to move forward with an ambitious plan aimed at reducing dependence on Russian oil imports by 92% by the end of 2022.