The Russian consumer protection service is reportedly instructing Russian retailers to stop selling consumer products from Western companies such as Procter & Gamble, Henkel, Colgate-Palmolive and Clorox. The official reason given by the Russian consumer service is that there are lingering safety concerns related to the companies’ soap, cosmetics and other products, although it seems likely that the decision is politically motivated.

It is unclear what the immediate impact will be if Russian retailers begin to pull Western consumer products from shelves. Procter & Gamble, for one, currently controls a 40% of the Russian home-and-personal care market, and enjoys “more than half the market” share in other related categories. So far the companies’ have not issued a statement regarding the decision, although their stocks were down as of September 1.

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News Briefs:

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