BLBG:Ruble Heads for Strongest Level in Two-Weeks Against U.S. Dollar
The ruble gained for a third day against the dollar, heading for its strongest level in two weeks, as oil traded near a one-week high.
The Russian currency rose 1 percent to 31.3944 at 12:11 p.m. in Moscow, poised for the strongest close since Dec. 8. The ruble added 0.5 percent to 41.1751 versus the euro, heading for the strongest level since Sept. 9 and leaving it at 35.7915 against the central bank’s target dollar-euro basket.
Oil futures were little changed at $98.91 a barrel after adding 1.5 percent yesterday as U.S. Energy Department data showed stockpiles fell the most in a decade. Brent oil for February settlement on the London-based ICE Futures Europe was at $107.61 a barrel, down 10 cents.
Investors pared bets the Russian currency will weaken further, with non-deliverable forwards showing the ruble at 31.9018 per dollar in three months, compared with expectations of 32.1559 per dollar yesterday. 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 were little changed, leaving the yield one basis points lower at 4.622 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
