- Russian Rouble (RUB) trades down 40% this week
- Rating agencies downgrade Russian sovereign bonds to junk
- US Dollar (USD) rises across the board with rate hikes expected
- US ADP payroll data & Fed Powell speaks
The US Dollar Russian Rouble (USD/RUB) exchange rate is rising on Thursday. The pair settled +4% higher yesterday at 106.02, building on gains of 7% on Tuesday. At 10:30 UTC, USD/RUB trades +10.4% at 117.10.
The Rouble fell to fresh lows against the USD and the EUR after international rating agencies, such as Moody’s and Fitch, downgraded Russia’s sovereign debt to junk status.
The Russian central bank attempted to curb demand for dollars and stem the Rouble slide by imposing a 30% commission on foreign currency exchange transactions, but this doesn’t appear to have stopped the selloff.
Russia’s financial markets have experienced complete turmoil after the West applied sanctions in response to Russia invading Ukraine, creating the most significant security threat in Europe since World War 2. The attack on Ukraine continues with heavy shelling overnight. However, Russia has said that it is ready to negotiate again.
The US Dollar is rising across the board. The US Dollar Index, which measures the greenback versus a basket of major currencies, trades +0.24% at the time of writing at 97.62 after ending flat yesterday.
US macroeconomic data was upbeat yesterday, painting a solid picture of the US labour market. The closely watched ADP payrolls report revealed 475,000 private jobs were created in February, above the 378,000 estimated. Meanwhile, January’s count was upwardly revised to 509,000, from -301,000.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, in his testimony before Congress, Fed Chair Powell, signaled that the US central bank would raise interest rates by 25 basis points, below the 50-basis point that some had been forecasting. This is expected to be the first of up to 6 rate hikes across 2022 in an attempt to tame 4-decade high inflation.
Today attention will stay on Fed Powell, who will testify before Congress again. The US economic calendar is also busy with US Challenger job cuts, ISM non-manufacturing data, and US jobless claims.
