BLBG:Ruble Declines to 10-Week Low Versus Dollar as Oil Price Falls
The ruble fell to its weakest level in 10 weeks, as oil, Russia’s chief export, dropped for a fourth day and traded near its lowest position in six weeks.
The Russian currency depreciated less than 0.1 percent to 32.04 by 10:44 a.m. in Moscow, heading for its lowest since Oct. 7 and adding to a 3.6 percent decline in the past two weeks. The ruble was little changed at 41.6885 versus the euro, leaving it steady at 36.3841 against the central bank’s target dollar-euro basket.
Oil futures slipped as much as 0.9 percent to $92.67 a barrel in New York after falling 0.4 percent on Dec. 16 to their lowest close since Nov. 2. Oil extended its losses after today’s announcement that North Korean leader Kim Jong Il died. European Union finance ministers will hold a conference call today addressing a self-imposed deadline for drawing additional aid and creating new budget rules.
Investors increased bets that the Russian currency will weaken further, with non-deliverable forwards showing the ruble at 32.4915 per dollar in three months, compared with expectations of 32.43 per dollar on Dec. 16. The contracts are a guide to expectations of currency movements as they allow foreign investors and companies to fix the exchange rate at a particular level in the future.
Russia’s dollar-denominated Eurobond due in 2020 fell, increasing the yield two basis points to 4.753 percent.
To contact the reporter on this story: Denis Maternovsky in Moscow at dmaternovsky@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Gavin Serkin at gserkin@bloomberg.net
