Putin warns Russian business not to squander 'Iran war' oil windfall

Russian President Vladimir Putin has cautioned the country's business community against spending windfall profits from rising oil prices, warning that market conditions could reverse quickly.

The US has not removed sanctions on Russian oil exports wholesale, but it has temporarily eased some restrictions. Washington issued a 30-day waiver covering Russian oil and petroleum products already loaded on vessels or stranded at sea. The move was framed by the US Treasury as a short-term step to stabilise global energy markets.

Speaking at the annual congress of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) in Moscow on March 26, Putin said the temptation to capitalise on surging commodity prices must be resisted, RIA Novosti reported.

"When the prices of our traditional exports are rising, but markets are also volatile, there may be a temptation to take advantage of the situation. To receive windfall revenues and, as they say, fritter them away on dividends, or, as far as the state is concerned, to inflate budget expenditures. We must maintain prudence," Putin said.

The Russian president warned that prices could swing sharply in either direction and called for a conservative approach to budgetary policy to ensure the state could meet its obligations to Russian citizens.

Putin said the consequences of the US-Israeli war on Iran were difficult to forecast, noting that some analysts believed its economic impact could be comparable to that of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The president also said Russia had maintained macroeconomic stability despite Western sanctions and called for cuts to administrative barriers and business costs.

He said authorities would prioritise artificial intelligence, autonomous systems and digital platforms, supporting business investment in modernisation based on domestic technologies.

Putin also called for reductions in paperwork burdens on teachers and doctors. The RSPP congress in Moscow concludes Russia's Business Week.