DUSHANBE, August 3, 2015, Asia-Plus – Russian media outlets report that the Russian currency has fallen against the dollar and the euro in early trading, hitting rates last seen in March.
Thus, the ruble reportedly fell to 62.35 to the dollar and 68.51 to the euro on the Moscow Exchange early on August 3.
It is the first time since March 16 that the 62-ruble level was surpassed against the dollar.
The euro-ruble rate has not been this high since early March.
The ruble-dollar rate closed at about 61.7 at the close of trading on July 31. The euro-ruble rate was just under 68 rubles on July 31.
The weakening of the ruble is often attributed to lower oil prices.
Itar Tass
reported on July 30 that the Russian national currency’s latest fall to the 60-ruble mark against the US dollar – a record-low since last March – is fraught with no major risks for the economy. Given the Central Bank’s accumulated anti-crisis experience one should feel no fear the ruble may plummet overnight, polled experts have told
TASS
. The Central Bank’s declaration it had stopped purchasing hard currency for building up the gold and foreign exchange reserves has already “put much muscle” into the ruble.
On May 13 this year the dollar was selling for less than 50 rubles, while at the beginning of last week it was above 60 rubles, according to
TASS
. Before the opening of a July 29 exchange trading the Central Bank declared that on July 28 it made a decision to suspend currency purchases for the gold and foreign exchange reserves, high volatility on the market being the main reason. On July 29, the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) reportedly reduced interventions from the usual $200 million dollars a day to $160 million. Immediately after the CBR’s statement the ruble firmed to 58.81 rubles per dollar.
Vneshekonombank’s strategic analysis and research director, Vladimir Andrianov, believes the ruble’s smooth devaluation is the regulator’s well-considered decision.
“This measure surely contributes to budget revenue growth,” Andrianov told
TASS
. “External factors, such as falling oil prices, have played a role in the ruble’s weakening, too. The barrel of Brent crude has been on the decline for two weeks in a row to $54. While in many oil producing countries the national currency’s exchange rate does not depend on the price of oil, in Russia these two factors are closely correlated,” Andrianov told
TASS
on July 30.
“I do not rule out a smooth decline of the ruble’s rate, but there will be nothing like the steep fall of December 2014. The CBR has learned the lesson and it will not permit speculations on the money market again. The regulator will keep the situation under control with reliance on the available reserves,” Andrianov forecasts.
The president of the Association of Russian Banks, Garegin Tosunian, reportedly also remarks that although replenishing the country’s gold and foreign exchange reserves is an important task, it would be not very logical for the regulator to go on purchasing $200 million a day, thereby supporting another country’s currency. “It is very good the Bank of Russia has arrived at the decision to suspend currency purchases to help the ruble get firmer,” Tosunian told
TASS
in an interview.
