Global Oil Prices Collapsing. Russian Ruble Hits New Low

Oil tankers in a Russian railway siding. The sharp fall in crude prices has added downward pressure on the Russian ruble on currency markets. Reuters

Russian Ruble Falls To New Lows As Oil Prices Slide -- Wall Street Journal

Ruble Down to 49.90 Against the Dollar

MOSCOW—The Russian ruble weakened to new lows in early trading on Friday, hit by a drop in oil prices after OPEC members rejected calls for drastic action to cut their oil output.

OPEC members’ decision to keep their production ceiling unchanged sent Brent crude prices below $72 per barrel for the first time since mid-2010, threatening to put more of a brake on Russia’s economic growth. The country receives around 50% of its revenue from exporting oil and gas.

The ruble touched an all-time low of 49.90 versus the dollar in the first minutes of trading on Moscow exchange, before recovering slightly to 49.57. This takes the ruble’s year-to-date depreciation versus the greenback to 34%.

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More News On Collapsing Oil Prices And It's Impact On The Russian Economy

Russian markets & ruble hit new lows, as OPEC oil decision weighs -- RT
Russia's Ruble Crashes to Historic Lows as OPEC Lets Oil Price Fall -- Moscow Times
Ruble Drops to Record in Worst Month in Five Years as Bonds Fall -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Russian ruble hits historic lows on OPEC decision -- AFP
Russia's Ruble Tumbles After OPEC Refuses to Cut Oil Output -- Moscow Times/Reuters
Russian Ruble Hits Historic Lows Against Dollar, Euro On OPEC Decision -- Radio Free Europe
OPEC Decision ‘A Watershed for the Oil Market’ — Street Reacts -- WSJ

My Comment: For Russia .... oil prices may have dropped, but this has been offset by the decline in the Russian ruble. Pensions and salaries are still going to be paid .... but this is not a trend that Moscow and its business elite are looking at fondly.