Page 135 - RusRPTOct22

9.1.3 Aviation sector news
Russia could tap the National Welfare Fund (NWD) to buy out foreign passenger jets still held in the country despite Western sanctions from foreign lessors, Kommersant daily reported citing a letter from the Ministry of Transportation to the 20 largest domestic air carriers. Russian airlines are in disarray following the sanctions, facing airspace closures and returning over 500 leased passenger aircraft worth about $20bn to foreign leasing companies, The aircraft continue to be held in Russia despite the sanctions.
9.1.5 Retail sector news
Apple's new iPhone — the iPhone 14 — went on sale in U.S. stores Friday and is eagerly awaited in Moscow. Even though the company’s flagship product is not officially available in Russia, it will still reach the country via the so-called parallel imports scheme. Moreover, a strong ruble means there has reportedly been a significant uptick in pre-orders of the iPhone 14.
● Officially, Apple has ceased its operations in Russia and does not supply products to the country. Despite this, Russian retailers will still be stocking the new iPhones because the parallel import scheme allows Russian companies to import goods without the agreement of the copyright holder. These imports take place via third countries,
135 RUSSIA Country Report October 2022 www.intellinews.com