KEY POINTS

• Russian food inflation remains rampant, with butter prices rising 30% since December last year. Sunflower oil and vegetables are among the other items seeing ongoing price rises.
• Russia’s central bank last month hiked interest rates to 21% — their highest level in over 20 years — but the high rates have shown few signs of dampening inflation so far.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied that Russia has exchanged “butter for guns,” as the country’s leadership has deflected blame for price rises onto “unfriendly” countries.