MOSCOW: The Russian rouble strengthened less than expected against the U.S. dollar on Thursday despite support from foreign currency sales by exporting companies which need roubles to make their corporate tax payments at the end of the month.
By 1115 GMT, the rouble was up 0.6% at 83.55 against the dollar in the over-the-counter market. The Russian currency is up more than 26% this year.
Against the Chinese yuan, the most traded foreign currency in Russia, the rouble was flat at 11.46 on the Moscow Stock Exchange.
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“It seems that the exporters have already acted, and they might have even got lucky by selling the main bulk of their revenue for taxes at the lows of last week,” said a dealer from a major Russian bank, who declined to be identified by name.
“Forex purchases are almost constant right now since the exchange rate is attractive, plus there are concerns that the authorities might ‘devalue’ the rouble further, as it is not beneficial for the budget,” the dealer added.
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