Silicon Bites Ep268 | News Update - Day 1,356 - 2025-11-10 | ----------SOURCES: Monetary policy & macro* Bank of Russia key rate cut to 16.5% (Oct 24, 2025), official release. (Central Bank of Russia)* Reuters explainer on the cut and inflation backdrop. (Reuters)* Manufacturing PMI contraction (Aug 1, 2025). (Reuters)Budget, debt, NWF* Debt-service share and 2026 increase. (Reuters)* Siluanov on liquid NWF ~3.3–4 trln rubles. (Reuters)* VAT to 22% in 2026; tax package and SME pushback; phased VAT-threshold changes. (Reuters)Industry, labor, rail* Six industrial giants shorten workweeks; RZD unpaid days; AvtoVAZ 4-day week through 2025; UVZ restructuring. (Reuters)* RZD cargo shortfall document; investment cuts. (Reuters)Retail & households* Grocery volumes and margin collapse. (The Moscow Times)War-energy feedback* Refinery hits, diesel export slump. (Financial Times)* Volgograd refinery re-hit. (AP News)* National fuel shortage after strikes (context). (The Washington Post)Mobilization payouts* Regions slashing sign-on bonuses. (The Moscow Times)* Shift to 400–800k rubles. (Eurasia Review)Additional viewing:* Michael Naki and Vladimir Milov’s macro economic brief (budget, debt, inflation, rate dynamics).----------SILICON CURTAIN LIVE EVENTS - FUNDRAISER CAMPAIGN Events in 2025 - Advocacy for a Ukrainian victory with Silicon Curtainhttps://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasOur events of the first half of the year in Lviv, Kyiv and Odesa were a huge success. Now we need to maintain this momentum, and change the tide towards a Ukrainian victory. The Silicon Curtain Roadshow is an ambitious campaign to run a minimum of 12 events in 2025, and potentially many more. Any support you can provide for the fundraising campaign would be gratefully appreciated. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasWe need to scale up our support for Ukraine, and these events are designed to have a major impact. Your support in making it happen is greatly appreciated. All events will be recorded professionally and published for free on the Silicon Curtain channel. Where possible, we will also live-stream events.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------