During yesterday’s trading on the MICEX currency basket price dropped to a mark of 34.53 USD .- lowest level since December 2008. Following the session, the basket price stood at 34.5587 rubles., A 7 kopecks. below the close on Friday. Nearly continuous strengthening of the ruble is observed for three months. During this period the basket fell to 2.5 rubles.
In recent days, strengthening of the ruble actively prevents the Central Bank. He resumed intervention in favor of the dollar since mid-February. Until that time, for almost three months (from mid-November), the Bank of Russia shall be a planned purchase of currencies of its total purchases during this period are estimated at $2.2 billion, passive behavior of CB contributed to the strengthening of the dollar in world markets. However, since mid-February, U.S. dollar exchange rate remained stable in the range of $1,35-1,36 per euro. As a result, an ever-growing sales of foreign exchange earnings had to shift the boundaries of the Central Bank of three-ruble range of changes in the value basket. For less than a month lost in the basket price of 43 kopecks. And the Bank of Russia shifted the range of ten times, lowering it to the level of 35-38 rubles. to 34,55-37,55 rub. At yesterday’s auction of CB is also actively redeemed dollars. Traders said Dennis Korshilova Citibank, Bank of Russia first bought the currency at 34.6 rubles. and 34.55 rubles. the basket. According to the bidders, yesterday the Central Bank could buy back $1,4-1,8 billion, while total in March – $3-3,3 billion
Bidders believe that the weakening of the basket in the next few days will continue at the expense of both Western and Russian merchants currency. “At current oil prices, capital flows to Russia’s market will continue, that will have a positive impact on the value of the ruble,” – says the bank’s chief economist, BNP Paribas Julia Tseplyaeva. According to head of operations in the money and goods market Promsvyazbank Cyril Grishanova, the fundamental reasons for the reversal rate of the ruble has not, so in the next few days shopping “could lose from 10 to 15 kopecks..” Additional pressure on the dollar in Russia market in the coming days will have a tax payment – for the budget settlements in rubles Russia’s exporters will be more actively sell the currency. “Many banks now offer short-dollar positions in the hope to earn, when sales of export earnings by selling bid of CB”, – said Denis Korshilov.
