Let's all weep for them. /sarc
Posted on 12/03/2014 9:44:50 AM PST by Lorianne
The Russian markets opened on December 1 to a catastrophe. The price of Brent crude oil fell below $70 a barrel, causing the ruble to drop heavily yet again.
There had been some signs that the Russian currency was beginning to claw back some of the ground lost this year, but another step-down in the price of oil to below the psychologically important $70 level kicked the legs out from under the nascent rally.
Against the dollar, the ruble exchange rate had dropped 9.3% by midday, taking it below the key RUB50/$ for the first time. You’d have to go back to January 1999 to find a similarly steep fall.
The currency started the year at RUB33/$ and has gone from the second best performing currency in the world to the worst, reported Bloomberg this year, losing over a third of its value.
But what is freaking traders out is that the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) is standing on the sidelines and has not intervened to support the currency. "I think the CBR has misread the script: instead of a free floating ruble we have a free falling ruble," said Tim Ash, head of emerging markets research at Standard Bank, in a widely quoted note that catches something of the panic.
Those that were dismissive of a $60 oil price in 2015 are already starting to look out of touch. The CBR has an $80 price in its pessimistic forecast for 2015, but already at the end of November was suggesting it will have to revise this number down. And the commentaries have started to bring up the $10 price that took Russia into the 1998 crisis.
(Excerpt) Read more at bne.eu ...
Apparently it’s not a ‘Bear’ market..................
Let's all weep for them. /sarc
By mid-December.
$40 oil will bankrupt Russia!
That’s a pretty hostile list of countries on that graph. Pity, they won’t be able to export as much terror and chaos with oil down.
Does this mean Russian hookers will be cheaper?
"Ceterum censeo 0bama esse delendam."
Garde la Foi, mes amis! Nous nous sommes les sauveurs de la République! Maintenant et Toujours!
(Keep the Faith, my friends! We are the saviors of the Republic! Now and Forever!)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)
It could possibly make them more motivated to start trouble though. Iran might want to take possession of Iraq, Saudi Arabia's, and Kuwait's oil fields. (would be a cold day in hell before we'd allow that to happen)
Would be interesting to see how 0bama would handle that situation.
Maybe not.
Leave it to Freepers for thorough research.
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