Speculation that Shell (LON: SHEL) may convert and repatriate more than $1 billion of ruble earnings from the sale of a project in the Far East has helped drive the Russian currency to its weakest level in a year.
Italian energy giant Eni is preparing to open ruble accounts at Gazprombank JSC, allowing it to potentially comply with Russian demands that gas must be paid for in local currency, according to people familiar with the matter.
Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft saw its second quarter profit fall but a weak rouble helped soften the hit by countering the slump in the price of oil.
Russian stocks gained for a fifth day and the ruble strengthened after oil’s biggest weekly advance in four years and as talks on a ceasefire in Ukraine continued. The Micex Index of stocks rose 2% to reach the highest level since April 2011 with food retailer Magnit leading the advance. The ruble jumped 2% against the dollar. Government bonds climbed after central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina said policy makers are unlikely to reverse last month’s surprise interest rate cut. Russian assets have been pummeled by falling oil prices and intensifying fighting in Ukraine. Today’s rebound follows a rally in the price of Brent and the prospect for a lasting agreement to end the fighting.
OAO Rosneft will place 400 billion rubles ($6.1 billion) in ruble bonds today as Russia’s largest oil producer plans to repay loans raised for deals and growth. Rosneft completed collecting bids for the sale in 1 hour on January 23 and set the coupon at 11.9%, the Moscow-based company said in a statement. Russian government bonds due in June this year yield 14.65%, according to data compiled.
Russian energy company Gazprom said it was cutting expenses by more than $200million in an effort to streamline operations going forward. The board of directors said it was cutting expenses by $238.7 million and expecting around $1.65 billion in foreign loans. The Russian Central Bank last week raised its key interest rate by 6.5% to 17% in an effort to arrest the decline of the nation's currency.
The ruble has continued to slide even after Russia’s Central Bank sought to ease the selling pressure on the currency following the drop in oil prices by raising interest rates again. The Central Bank raised its key interest rate by a percentage point to 10.5%, citing an increasing rise in consumer prices and “significant inflation risks”. The bank said inflation is expected to hit 10% for 2014 and rise further in the first quarter of 2015.