Rouble strengthens as Russia says oil price comfortable
MOSCOW, Aug 2 (Reuters) -The Russian rouble edged up against the dollar on Friday following Russia's statement that current prices of oil, the country's primary export commodity, were comfortable.
By 0730 GMT, the rouble was 0.7% higher at 85.50 RUB= against the dollar.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday the current level of oil prices was comfortable for Russia, its budget, and other participants in the market. Supply and demand remained in balance, he added.
Trading in major currencies shifted to the over-the-counter market, obscuring the pricing data, after Western sanctions on the Moscow Exchange MOEX.MM and its clearing agent, the National Clearing Centre, were introduced on July 12.
The rouble is also bolstered by the central bank's recent decision to raise the benchmark interest rate by 200 basis points to 18%, alongside delays in international payments for imported goods due to Western sanctions.
These payment delays have slowed imports in recent months, reducing demand for foreign currency.
Against the yuan, which had already become the most traded foreign currency in Moscow before the latest sanctions were imposed, the rouble was also up 0.2% at 11.80, according to an analysis of the OTC market.
It was down 0.2% at 92.41 against the euro EURRUB=.
Brent crude oil LCOc1, a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was up 0.8% at $80.12 a barrel on Friday, but was set for a fourth successive weekly decline as signs of disappointing global fuel demand growth outweighed fears of supply disruptions.
Reporting by Gleb Bryanski; Editing by Alex Richardson
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