June 06, 2006 Print | E-mail | Home Dollar Falls to 1999 Level against Ruble
// Losses 40 kopecks in three business days
The continued its steps to strengthen the ruble yesterday, as result of which the dollar hit 26.685 rubles, its lowest exchange level since December 1999. The Central Bank's task is made easier by the fall of the dollar on world markets as well. The dollar hit its lowest level against the euro since March 2004 yesterday $1.2979 to the euro. All of this is indicative of the possibility that the Federal Reserve Board may leave the discount rate alone for a while.
The ruble has risen by 3.3 percent against the dollar since the beginning of this year. The last time the strengthened the ruble was at the beginning of the year. The latest strengthening, economists say, may represent the beginning of a new round in the fight against inflation. Since the effects of the strengthening of the currency are felt on consumer prices only with a considerable delay, this is the last chance for fiscal authorities to influence inflation this year.
While 15 kopecks of the 40-kopeck loss of the dollar against the ruble in the last three business days were attributable to the strengthening of the ruble in relation to the two-currency basket, the remaining 25 kopecks represent the dollars slide on world markets. The dollar hit a 13-month low against the euro after the U.S. Department of Labor announced on Friday that the number of new jobs created in that country in May was less than half of what analysts had predicted (75,000 as opposed to 180,000). That caused an immediate 1.3-percent loss to the dollar relative to the euro.
While those events reduce the likelihood that the U.S. Federal Reserve Board will raise its discount rate, it is almost assured that the European Central Bank will raise its rate from its current 2.5 percent, perhaps by as much as 50 base points. The strengthening of the ruble is likely to continue.
The ruble has risen by 3.3 percent against the dollar since the beginning of this year. The last time the strengthened the ruble was at the beginning of the year. The latest strengthening, economists say, may represent the beginning of a new round in the fight against inflation. Since the effects of the strengthening of the currency are felt on consumer prices only with a considerable delay, this is the last chance for fiscal authorities to influence inflation this year.While 15 kopecks of the 40-kopeck loss of the dollar against the ruble in the last three business days were attributable to the strengthening of the ruble in relation to the two-currency basket, the remaining 25 kopecks represent the dollars slide on world markets. The dollar hit a 13-month low against the euro after the U.S. Department of Labor announced on Friday that the number of new jobs created in that country in May was less than half of what analysts had predicted (75,000 as opposed to 180,000). That caused an immediate 1.3-percent loss to the dollar relative to the euro.While those events reduce the likelihood that the U.S. Federal Reserve Board will raise its discount rate, it is almost assured that the European Central Bank will raise its rate from its current 2.5 percent, perhaps by as much as 50 base points. The strengthening of the ruble is likely to continue. Alexey Baibakov All the Article in Russian as of June 06, 2006 See Also The Era of the Strong Ruble // Documents (June 08, 2006) U.S. the Only Obstacle on Russia’s ... // Documents (June 07, 2006) Feds Chair Leaves Russian Traders ... // Documents (June 07, 2006) Big Deposits/Fields to Become Strategic // News (June 06, 2006) Finance Ministry Suggests Pardoning ... // News (June 05, 2006)
Dos medidas económicas tomadas por el presidente ruso Vladimir Putin han causado el reajuste sucedido la semana anterior en las principales bolsas de valores del mundo.

Una de estas medidas, tomada el pasado jueves (8), fue el cambio de una parte de sus reservas internacionales en dólares a euros, obligando al Banco de la Reserva Federal de los Estados Unidos a elevar las tasas de intereses para proteger la moneda estadounidense y prevenir un aumento en la inflación.

Las reservas internacionales de divisa de Rusia después de la medida se distribuyen así: 40% en euros, 50% en dólares y un 10% en libras esterlinas. Dichas reservas han crecido rápidamente debido al alza en los precios de petróleo y del gas, y es hoy el cuarto país con las mayores reservas del mundo, después de Japón, China y Taiwán. Se estima que las reservas rusas superarán a las de Taiwán para finales del presente año.

La movida rusa sucede en momentos en que varios países productores del petróleo han manifestado sus intenciones de diversificar la distribución de sus reservas de divisa internacional.

La segunda decisión tomada por el Kremlin, también el jueves, fue la de por primera vez empezar a cotizar petróleo y oro en moneda local en el Sistema Mercantil Ruso (RTS), como se conoce a la bolsa de valores rusa.