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5.0 External Sector & Trade 5.1 External sector overview
Parallel importing refers to imports without the permission of the intellectual property owner that circumvent authorised distributors of the goods.
Russian law on parallel imports has generally required that offenders pay compensation to the intellectual property owner and destroy the improperly imported goods. As of May 7, however, parallel imports of many goods are now permitted in Russia. The decision to legalise parallel imports covers a wide range of items from cosmetics to car parts and gaming consoles. For some goods, the dispensation only applies to certain trademarks of companies based in countries deemed “unfriendly” to Russia.
The Russian government’s purpose in allowing parallel imports is to make imported goods available domestically and harm foreign companies that produce the goods. Western sanctions on Russia ban the export of many goods to Russia. In addition, many firms have decided on their own to suspend or cease their Russian businesses.
Russian Customs has halted its release of foreign trade figures, but the export figures of other countries indicate a substantial decline in Russian imports in
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