Rouble Still Above $100, Weakening Trend Seen

INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Rouble still above $100, weakening trend seenThe rouble held above 100 against the dollar on Wednesday after weakening to a record low of
117 in other markets post-Russia's trading hours in the previous session.While the rouble's volatility has been high since it attacked
Ukraine, which is the most significant assault on a European state since World War Two, the aggressive Western Sanctions in response have
weakened the Russian currency and hurt ordinary citizens' daily lives.The rouble plunged nearly 30% to an all-time low versus the dollar
after Western-led political, strategic, economic and corporate sanctions were unprecedented in their extent and coordination.While the
currency has recouped some of those losses as Russia's central bank raised its key rate to an unprecedented 20 per cent and announced
capital controls, it was still trading above 100 per dollar on Wednesday.A decision by Western allies on Saturday to block "selected"
Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) payments system will inflict a crippling economic
blow to Russia, slowing trade and making transactions costlier.They are likely to hurt the supply of essential goods in Russia, which will
reduce living standards in Russia and push already high inflation further up.With the Russian central bank curbed from intervening in
currency markets due to the sanctions, authorities ordered exporting companies to sell over three-fourths of their foreign exchange revenues
on the market
The president announced a ban on exporting cash in foreign currency over $10,000 from Wednesday.Still, the rouble held above 100 per dollar,
well below the 75 against the dollar it was trading before the Ukraine conflict started last week.Oil prices surged past $110 per barrel as
investors worried about the impact of aggressive sanctions against Russia and are likely to weigh on the rouble further."We think that there
of it depends upon political factors and making sure that some of the supply coming out of Russia is offset with (not just) more oil from
United States shale, but also Iran," he added.