
The Russian economy is expecting to get a significant financial boost from an increased tourist flow during the FIFA World Cup, the Russian Ministry of Economic Development said. “According to our estimates, foreigners will spend over 100 billion rubles (US$1.6 billion) during the World Cup in Russia,” Minister of Economic Development Maxim Oreshkin told Sovetsky Sport newspaper.

The threat of trade protectionism is the biggest concern looming over a solid upswing in the global economy, IMF managing director Christine Lagarde said. The “darkest cloud” on the economic horizon is the “determination of some to actually rock the system that has actually presided over the trade relationships that we have all undertaken and enjoyed to some extent over the last many decades”, said Lagarde.

“We are really moving ahead and we have committed to President Macri that we will do the best we can in order to move expeditiously and efficiently in order to change the perception about Argentina and the perception that people have about our role,” Ms Lagarde said in Russia.

The UK has been accused of turning a blind eye to Russia's dirty money, putting national security at risk. The House of Commons foreign affairs committee said London was being used to hide the corrupt assets of President Vladimir Putin and his allies.

Geopolitics has taken over the oil market, driving oil prices up to three-year highs. The inventory surplus has vanished, and more outages could push oil prices up even higher. Yet, there are some signs that demand is starting to take a hit as oil closes in on $80 per barrel.

The Argentine Football Association (AFA) has been criticized for including a chapter about how to stand a chance with a Russian girl in a manual it handed to journalists travelling to the World Cup in Russia. It recommended that journalists look clean, smell nice and dress well in order to impress Russian girls.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has spoken with Germany's Angela Merkel and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a bid to keep the Iran nuclear deal alive after the US decision to withdraw, the Kremlin said Friday.

Western powers, Russia and China remain committed to the Iran nuclear deal - after the US announced it was withdrawing from the agreement. The UK, France and Germany say they will work with all remaining parties and urged the US not to obstruct its implementation and the other signatories to the 2015 deal - Russia and China - have also stressed their continuing support.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was sworn in to a fourth term on Monday, extending his 18-year rule amid promises of continuity in foreign policy and renewed efforts toward building prosperity at home. During his swearing in ceremony at the gilded Andreyevsky Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace, Putin assured Russians that his rule had “revived pride” in the country.

With tensions between NATO and Russia rising, the U.S. military is resurrecting a fleet to patrol the Atlantic Ocean and help respond to global contingencies. The U.S. Second Fleet will provide forces along the U.S. coast and in the northern Atlantic Ocean, according to Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. John Richardson, who made the announcement Friday during a change of command ceremony in Norfolk, Virginia.