Nearly a year on from the supposed Russian exodus, most major companies have yet to withdraw

Key Points

• A report documented a total of 2,405 subsidiaries owned by 1,404 EU and G-7 companies that were active in Russia at the time of the first military incursion into Ukraine.
• By November 2022, fewer than 9% had divested at least one subsidiary in Russia, and the research team noted that these divestment rates barely changed over the fourth quarter of 2022.
• Barclays European consumer staples analysts said that while most of the companies they cover had pledged to exit Russia, few have managed to do so yet.

The logo of German consumer chemicals giant Henkel can be seen at the company's plant in Duesseldorf, western Germany, on January 18, 2016.

PATRIK STOLLARZ | AFP | Getty Images

After Russian troops invaded Ukraine in February 2022, companies across the G-7 major economies and the European Union announced plans to cease business operations in Russia.

Yet by the end of the year, very few had fully delivered on that promise, according to new research from Switzerland's University of St. Gallen.