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As of March 1, 2026, a ban for foreign companies and Russian entities with foreign participation to provide services for analyzing goods markets in Russia has come into effect.

The law introducing the ban was signed by President of Russia in July 2025. It applies to foreign states, international organizations, foreign legal entities, as well as Russian companies with foreign ownership of more than 20% and revenues exceeding 800 million rubles.

Exceptions under the law allow research to be conducted for company’s own interests without subsequent transfer to third parties; at the request of government agencies or using information from government official databases in accordance with Russian legislation.

Data on markets that cannot be analyzed by foreigners includes the supply and demand, prices, conditions for the circulation of goods on the market, production volumes, imports and exports, sales of goods, as well as information about consumers, producers, and importers of goods.

In February media reported the UK’s pricing agency Argus Media, operating in Russia through Argus Rus Limited, had sent a letter to the Russian Ministry of Finance expressing its "serious concern" about the law restricting activities of foreign research organizations. As Argus representatives stressed, after the launch of military operation in Ukraine the company remained the only international pricing agency continuing to share its data with the Russian authorities. The Russian Ministry of Economic Development uses Argus Media oil price data to calculate the average price of Russian Urals crude oil on a monthly basis for taxation purposes in the oil sector.