Ruble share in Russian trade has doubled – Putin

The share of ruble transactions in Russia’s foreign trade has doubled since the start of the year and now accounts for one third of the country’s settlements, President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday at a meeting of the Council for Strategic Development and National Projects.

According to the head of state, the use of national currencies instead of the US dollar and euro in trade with Russia’s international partners continues to grow.

“We see the development of a convenient and independent payment infrastructure in national currencies as a solid base for strengthening international cooperation,” the president explained.

“We have already made good progress here. According to the latest data, the share of the Russian ruble in our international settlements doubled compared to last December to one-third, and together with currencies of friendly countries, this share exceeded one half,” Putin stated.

He also noted that the use of the ruble in trade settlements helped the overall performance of the Russian currency this year, saying the ruble “has become one of the strongest currencies in the world since the beginning of the year.”

According to Putin, timely government decisions regarding the Russian economy have also helped, including measures to regulate capital outflows and the introduction of the ruble-based gas payment mechanism. Both were introduced earlier this year in response to Ukraine-related Western sanctions on Russia.

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