Foreign firms’ losses from exiting Russia top US$107 billion

The corporate exodus from Russia since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine has cost foreign companies more than US$107 billion (RM506 billion) in writedowns and lost revenue, a Reuters analysis of company filings and statements showed.

The volume of losses have increased by one third since the last tally in August last year, underscoring the scale of the financial hit to the corporate world from Moscow’s invasion, as well as highlighting the sudden loss of Western expertise from Russia’s economy.

“As Russia’s invasion continues amid faltering Western military aid, and the granularity of Western sanctions regimes increases, companies still aiming to exit Russia will likely face further difficulties and have to accept greater writedowns and losses,“said Ian Massey, head of corporate Intelligence, EMEA, at global risk consultancy S-RM.

President Vladimir Putin, fresh from securing re-election in a landslide victory widely condemned in the West as unfair and undemocratic, now has a renewed mandate to pursue further isolation from the West, including through additional asset seizures and political pressure, Massey added.

About 1,000 companies have exited, although hundreds of companies including French retailer Auchan and Benetton are still operating or have put business on hold there, according to analysis by Yale School of Management.

Companies still operating or doing business in Russia include Mondelez International PepsiCo, Auchan, Nestle, Unilever, Reckitt and British American Tobacco. Others, including Intesa Sanpaolo , are facing bureaucratic hurdles as they try to leave.