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Higher alcohol prices brewing: Cost of vodka climbs as Russia rings in 2020

Consumers are also going to see price hikes on other strong alcoholic beverages as well

MOSCOW, January 1. /TASS/. Russians will wake up on New Year’s Day to higher prices on vodka, as its minimum retail price will increase to 230 rubles ($3.7), the Russian Finance Ministry says in its directive that came into force on the first day of 2020.

Consumers are also going to see price hikes on other strong alcoholic beverages as well. The minimum price of a 0.5-liter bottle of cognac will climb to 433 rubles ($7). A bottle of brandy will now cost 315 rubles ($5.1) at minimum.

Procurement prices from manufacturers and distributors are also going to rise. The producer price floor for vodka will see a 6.6-percent uptick to 193 rubles ($3.12), while cognac will see a 4-percent rise to 342 rubles ($5.54), and brandy - a 4.2-percent increase to 249 rubles ($4). It will be possible to buy vodka from distributors at a minimum price of 199 rubles ($3.2) per 500-ml bottle (up 7%), with cognac at 359 rubles ($5.8, a 6.2-percent increase), and brandy at 261 rubles ($4.2), climbing 4.4%.

The minimum price of ethyl alcohol produced from raw foods has escalated 32.5% to 57 rubles ($0.92) per liter of alcohol.

The Finance Ministry has been setting the price floors on alcoholic beverages since 2009 in order to combat bootleg production.

An effective minimum retail price of 164 rubles ($2.7) per 0.75 liter of sparkling wines is in effect in Russia. Furthermore, price floors for various categories of wines are being considered.

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