Russia No Longer Backs up Dollar? - 11 March, 2003

The whole of the world is standing motionless waiting for the Iraqi crisis to be solved. The oil price is increasing, the dollar rate keeps on declining. But now it seems that these problems draw attention of particular specialists only. Meanwhile, the dollar sank on the United Trading System once again. At that, during the trades USD reached the minimal quotation of 31.48 rubles per dollar, the same result was fixed at the end of June 2002. In other words, the annual dollar rise has come to nothing. It is quite clear that Russians who prefer to keep their savings in dollars are very much upset with this situation.

What is more, experts from Russian commercial banks, those who always closely observe currency-related operations of the RF Central Bank, emphasize that this time there was practically no dollar purchase by the Central Bank at a special session. It means both variants: either a decisive moment hasn’t come yet for inevitable intervention of the Central Bank, or the situation is actually such that the Central Bank cannot influence upon the situation.

Participants of the trades unanimously say that if we assume that the Central Bank hasn’t yet given up dollar support at the United Trading System, then its ruble intervention was so wonderfully concealed that nobody even managed to notice the intervention. 

Experts are sure that it would cost the Central Bank practically no effort to keep the dollar rate under the present-day conditions. Indeed, after a three-day break, the trading volume hasn’t exceed 119 million dollars. However, nothing was done at all.

Meanwhile, the USA has finally revealed some nervousness in connection with the successful decline of the national currency. By the way, the situation is actually disturbing. Since election of George W. Bush to the presidential post, the USD has dropped by 18% concerning other major currencies of the world. And the dollar has particularly fell in price with  respect to euro.

Akhtyam Akhtyrov
PRAVDA.Ru