Oil price stabilized at around $30 per barrel reduced the ruble’s currency rate volatility, Deputy Finance Minister Maksim Oreshkin said on the sidelines of the Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum Saturday.
“We cannot expect the exchange rate dynamics to substantially change each time with external factors unchanged. We’ve seen in recent weeks that certain stabilization of oil prices at around $30 per barrel has stabilized the currency rate,” he said.
The weakening of the ruble began in the second half of 2014, when from June to December the Russian currency fell against the dollar 2.2-fold. In 2015, against the backdrop of falling oil prices, the ruble fell by 31% against the dollar and by 17% against the euro. Since the beginning of this year, the dollar has risen by another 4.6% against the ruble to 77 rubles, and by 7% against the euro to 86 rubles.
The price for Brent crude oil has fallen by 13% year-to-date, and by 70% since the highs of 2014.