Putin is now losing money on EVERY barrel of oil he’s selling to China and India thanks to the 30% discount and the artificially inflated ruble. To fix this, he needs to make China and India pay full price or devalue the ruble by at least 30% or more.
“Putin is now losing money on EVERY barrel of oil he’s selling to China and India”
Russia may be, but Putin no doubt still gets his cut. Who will tell him no?
That disparity of interests, is just what led the old Soviet Union to run factories that not only lost money, but made products that were actually worth less than the raw materials that went into them. The gangsters and corrupt officials (but I repeat myself) want to keep their skim going.
When we get to the next oil/gas price crash, the implosion of Russian living standards will be visible from outer space - unless they have a new leader who distances Russia from this aggression in the Ukraine.