Russia might raise import duties on alcohol from unfriendly countries - paper

MOSCOW. March 27 (Interfax) - Russia might raise the import duty on liquor from unfriendly countries to 5 euros per liter of pure alcohol from the current 3 euros in May, national daily Kommersant reported, citing market sources.

The increase might be announced in April, one source said. This measure is expected to help counter the slump in demand for Russian brandy and whisky, another source said.

The Finance Ministry, the regulator of the alcohol market, did not respond to questions, the paper said.

Russia has had an import duty of 20% of the customs value but not less than 3 euros per liter of pure alcohol on liquor from unfriendly countries since September 2024.

Market experts said the duty hike will lead to a big increase in prices for imported spirits in the second half of this year. However, it will benefit major Russian brandy and whisky makers.

The planned duty increase is quite substantial and it will push up prices significantly, the president of the Alcopro Guild, Andrei Moskovsky told the paper. This will inevitably lead to a drop in sales of the most popular foreign alcohol brands.

The head of the spirits division at wine and spirits distributor Fort, Ruslan Bragin also said the cost of imports will increase. As before, the higher costs will be partly passed on to end consumers, he said. The share of imported alcohol in the lower and medium price segments will decrease, he added.