RosSMI write how the ways decided to fight the devaluation of the ruble. For the time being, there will be no tightening of currency restrictions to support the ruble, the business itself will sell part of the proceeds.
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The authorities decided to wait for the time being with new currency restrictions designed to strengthen the ruble exchange rate, the fall of which did not stop the increase in the key rate of the Central Bank of Russia immediately from 8.5% to 12%. So say Vedomosti, citing sources close to the government.
Earlier this week, Bloomberg reported on the possible return of the requirement for the mandatory sale of a part of foreign exchange earnings by exporters, and the Financial Times about President Vladimir Putin’s plans to hold an emergency meeting with officials to strengthen foreign exchange controls.
This meeting, in addition to the head of the Central Bank Elvira Nabiullina, was attended by the ministers of finance and the minister of economic development, as well as Putin’s assistant on economic issues Maxim Oreshkin (he had previously criticized the Central Bank and called for the strengthening of the ruble), Vedomosti writes.
According to the publication, the Russian government managed to “informally” agree with exporters to increase the sale of foreign exchange earnings, therefore, they will not yet set standards for the sale of foreign currency earnings by exporters and impose restrictions on the movement of capital.
Business representatives generally agreed to sell more proceeds, but if the situation does not change, the mandatory sale of export proceeds will become inevitable, one of Vedomosti’s sources said.
At the beginning of the war against Ukraine, when the ruble fell below this week’s lows (below 100 rubles to the dollar), currency restrictions allowed the ruble to strongly strengthen. At the end of February 2022, a requirement was introduced for the mandatory sale of 80% of exporters’ foreign exchange earnings, but already in May the standard was reduced from 80% to 50%.
Now the ruble has weakened due to the growth of imports (despite the sanctions) and lending, primarily corporate. According to one of the interlocutors of Vedomosti, instead of selling foreign exchange earnings, exporters could attract ruble loans to finance current expenses. And we are not talking about the oil industry, half of whose revenue goes to taxes (and to pay them, you need to buy rubles). Ignored the return of income to the country mainly fertilizer producers, says one of the sources of Vedomosti.
As for imports, Nabiullina, according to one of the sources of the publication, proposed to think about increasing the import duty in order to cool the demand for it.
At the opening of trading on the Moscow Exchange, the dollar rate is growing slightly on August 17, amounting to 94.78 rubles (+11.25 kopecks to the closing level of the evening session), Interfax states. On the eve of the ruble significantly strengthened in anticipation of information about possible measures of currency control.
Source: Racurs
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