russian monopoly money is now at a 2 year high so is this the work of artificially inflating their

[yaesu]

currency using voodoo economics or are sanctions just not hurting their economy?

The rouble soared to a more than two-year high against the euro in Moscow trade on Wednesday, Reuters reports.

Russia halted gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland for rejecting its demand for payment in roubles on Wednesday.

By 2:18pm GMT, the rouble had gained 1.8% to trade at 75.43 versus the euro , its strongest since early March 2020.

It was 1.1% stronger against the dollar at 72.75 .



Now, I had to check this for myself by calling up the chart & its true but hard to believe.

[roamer65]

1. 20 percent interest rates.

Same happened in the early 1980’s for the US dollar.

Sky high interest rates made the dollar way too strong and most manufacturing left the country.

Unemployment is going to skyrocket in Orcland.

[yaesu]

2. oh, yes, the interest rates, probably bonds, ect... play in but the risk has got to be "yuge"! nt

[roamer65]

12. Also, the Chinese Yuan is seeing increased use.

Especially in the Russian Far East.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-07/russian-coal-and-oil-paid-for-in-yuan-to-start-flowing-to-china

[DFW]

13. The Russians haven't used theor own currency for serious transactions for a while now.

Back in 1998, when I visited my German radio news correspondent friend in Moscow, he said don't bother to buy one ruble. Just bring dollars. He was right. Aside from bus fare and a few taxi rides, we didn't need rubles for anything. Whatever we bought there, we were asked a price in dollars, and were expected to pay with them, too.

[roamer65]

14. Reminds me of my 2001 trip to Australia.

The Aussie dollar was around 50 cents US then and most places I could pay in either one. Change was usually given in AUD, so would break a USD C note somewhere then spend the AUD change…then repeat the process.

At a 2 to 1 ratio, I lived like a king for those 3 weeks.

[GregariousGroundhog]

10. That and the fact that foreigners are allowed to buy rubles but not sell them

[former9thward]

3. Sanctions don't work.

Even with isolated countries like N. Korea they don't work. NK has been under sanctions forever and their behavior (and government) has never changed. They especially will not work with Russia. The vast majority of the world's countries are not participating in the sanctions. Even our neighbor, Mexico, is not participating.

Russia has been preparing for this for years. They have developed their own credit card system and can ignore the Western brands. They have done the same thing with banking. They are keeping the price of oil up and are making huge profits -- even selling at a discount -- to China, India and scores of other countries in Asia, Africa and S. America.

[rockfordfile]

4. Sanctions take time

[former9thward]

5. North Korea and Iran have been under some form of sanctions for decades.

Their behavior has not changed. And they don't even begin to have the resources and alliances Russia does.

[Kaleva]

17. Sanctions are just one tool in the toolbox

In the conflict with Russia .

[hunter]

6. The amoral market is betting the world can't quit Russian fossil fuels.

And they may be right.

[UCmeNdc]

7. When will the world learn that decentralized solar energy is the ultimate solution.

The oil industry is hiding this fact. Every house and every building can be its own energy source.

[hunter]

8. We zoomed right past that exit a long time ago.

I figure wind, solar, and other "renewable" energy sources can't support more than 3 or 4 billion people.

And that society would look nothing like the high energy industrial consumer economy many of us now enjoy, especially here in North America, where we have the highest per capita carbon dioxide emissions.

https://www.worldometers.info/co2-emissions/co2-emissions-per-capita/

You can drop out of this high energy economy any time you like. Quit paying your electric and gas bill and pour sand in the engines of your cars. Quit your job if it's dependent on high density energy sources.

Then what? The problems are the same at any scale, from a cabin in the woods to an entire nation.

There's not possible scenario where wind and solar possible magically replace fossil fuels.

Quitting fossil fuels is like quitting smoking. We just have to do it.

[yaesu]

9. update just now

Russia has nearly doubled its revenues from selling fossil fuels to the EU during the two months of war in Ukraine, benefiting from soaring prices even as volumes have been reduced, Guardian reporter Fiona Harvey writes for us today.

that is why, well, the main reason for the currency staying afloat and the economy not crashing. EU needs to dump putie ASAP

[DFW]

11. If those numbers (75.43 now vs 72.75 before) are accurate, the ruble is getting weaker, not stronger

The number you cite is how many rubles it takes to buy a euro, or, conversely, how many rubles a euro buys.

The more rubles one euro buys, the weaker the ruble is against the euro. Exaggerate the number to 1000 and see how this works. If the number goes up to 1000 rubles per euro, it means a Russian has to spend 1000 rubles to buy one euro, i.e. the ruble is worthless. If the number goes down to 2, it only takes 2 rubles for a Russian to buy a euro.

Ergo, the higher the number of rubles vs. the euro, that is how much weaker the ruble is, not how much stronger. If the rate is now 75.43 vs. 72.75, the ruble has LOST 1.8% against the euro, not gained. You last statement is correct: "It was stronger against the dollar at 72.75." The less rubles necessary to buy one euro, the stronger the ruble is. The more rubles necessary to buy a euro, the weaker the ruble is.

Another real life example: a month ago, a euro bought $1.10, but today it is around $1.05. That means the dollar is stronger against the euro, not weaker. That means an American now only has to spend $1.05 to buy a euro instead of $1.10.

I am paid in dollars but live in euros. Believe me, I have to keep an eye on this every day.

[former9thward]

15. You are mixing up Euros and dollars.

The OP gave quotes for both. It is not 75.43 vs. 72.75

It is 75.43 roubles per a Euro

It si 72.75 roubles per a dollar

[DFW]

18. That doesn't quite compute, though

As recently as yesterday morning, there was a 6% difference between the dollar and the Euro. If the ruble was at 72.75 to the dollar, then the ruble would have been at 1.06 X 72.75, or 77.115, per euro, not 75.43.

[Celerity]

16. 'I am paid in dollars but live in euros.'

You are doing great atm.

The euro may be headed to par with the USD.

[DFW]

19. I could only wish!

I have three five figure estimated tax bills in euros yet to pay in this calendar year, although due to my conservative nature, I have already bought the euros to cover the taxes coming due. What I owe in the USA is dollars to dollars, so it doesn't make a difference there.

[hunter]

20. I'm paid mostly in favors like some Cory Doctorow novel.

It's not a secure comfortable life.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cory_Doctorow

But maybe it's a step up from my brother who lives out in the Mojave desert like Snoopy's brother Spike.



Or not.