The Russian central bank announced a surprise meeting on Tuesday on the key rate on Monday, against the backdrop of the ruble’s plunge to the lowest level against the euro and the dollar since March 2022, just after the Russian attack on Ukraine.
Drop in income from the sale of hydrocarbons
One of the main causes of the currency’s fall is the state of foreign trade. Russia suffers in particular from the considerable drop in income linked to the sale of its hydrocarbons, under the effect of sanctions and the determination of Europeans to end their energy dependence on Moscow.
The BCR statement reassured markets somewhat, with the ruble bouncing late in the day. On the Moscow Stock Exchange, at the end of the afternoon, it was necessary to pay 98 rubles for one dollar and 107 rubles for one euro, after the rates of 100 and 110 respectively were exceeded in the morning.
If the BCR leaders continued hammering in recent days that they did not plan to raise the main reference rate, despite the weakening of the national currency and the return of inflation, they seem willing to change their minds. This is how the BCR will intervene, whose next meeting on tariffs was normally scheduled for mid-September. If resolved into a hike, it would be the second hike in the key rate in less than a month. It had already raised its main rate from 7.5% to 8.5% on July 21, for the first time since February 2022.
Source: BFM TV
