Russian rouble firms vs dollar, falls back sharply against euro

MOSCOW: The rouble firmed against the dollar on Tuesday and fell back sharply against the euro, giving up most of the previous session's gains, as concerns over possible new sanctions against Moscow continued to buffet the Russian currency.

By 0801 GMT, the rouble was 0.5% stronger against the dollar at 58.59​​ and had lost 4.2% to trade at 55.84 versus the euro. It had firmed 1.1% against the yuan to 8.18.

The rouble may come under pressure amid a low supply of foreign currency by exporters, said Banki.ru chief analyst Bogdan Zvarich, and may try to weaken past the 59 mark against the greenback.

The Russian currency has experienced significant swings in recent sessions, hampered by limited liquidity and investors' concerns that any new sanctions over Russia's actions in Ukraine could restrict access to foreign currency in Moscow.

Russian stock indexes were gaining, recovering further from months-long lows hit in late September. "The liquidity factor should give a further boost to the markets as money from Gazprom dividends flows to the market," said BCS Global Markets in a note.

The dollar-denominated RTS index was up 0.6% at 1,098.2 points, while the rouble-based MOEX Russian index edged up 0.1% to 2,044.6 points, earlier reaching its strongest since Sept. 23. Brent crude oil, a global benchmark for Russia's main export, rose 0.3% to $89.2 a barrel amid expectations OPEC+ could agree to large output cuts this week.​