In China, one of the biggest consumers of Russian oil this year, the foreign ministry has criticized the concept, warning last month that oil is too important to the global economy to be subject to the planned price controls.
The official annual inflation rate soared to 102.5% in February, the highest it has been since 1991 and despite price controls on more than 1,700 goods.
Store owners would tell government officials that they were obeying the price controls. But often they charged whatever they wanted for the goods they sold.