Page 78 - RusRPTOct23

Russia aspires to make the ruble more widely used in the global economy, particularly through settlements in national currencies, according to Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin speaking on September 28.
"We intend to hasten the transition to wider use of the ruble. We are expanding the network of direct correspondent accounts between Russian banks and friendly countries in national currencies, as well as the list of friendly countries' currencies traded on the Moscow Exchange," he said.
Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov said earlier that the share of the ruble and the Chinese yuan in trade settlements between Russia and China has reached 90%.
"Our trade in national currencies is now 90%. The share of the Russian ruble was 4%, now it is 20%," Reshetnikov said. He noted that the emphasis on the yuan in trade is inevitable based on the size of the Chinese economy and the convertibility of the currency.
The Russian national currency will gradually strengthen to 94.3 rubles per dollar by the end of 2023 mainly due to recovery of import dynamics, according to the focal points of the budget, tax and customs-tariff policy for 2024 and the planned period of 2025 and 2026 published on the website of the Finance Ministry.
"The ruble’s exchange rate will be mainly defined by the dynamics of payment balance. Its gradual strengthening to 94.3 rubles per US dollar is projected by the end of 2023 (connected mainly with recovery of import dynamics). In 2024-2026 the exchange rate dynamics will be at the range of 90-92 rubles per US dollar," the document said.
The Economic Development Ministry predicts the exchange rate of the national currency by the end of 2023 to be 94 rubles for a dollar. Head of the ministry Maxim Reshetnikov said this at a cabinet meeting.
"By the end of this year, the ruble will strengthen to 94 rubles per dollar. In 2024-2026, taking into account changes in the structure of payments and the volume of capital outflow, a new equilibrium will be formed at the level of 90-92 rubles per dollar," he said.
Previously, the Economic Development Ministry expected the average annual dollar-to-ruble rate to be 85.2 rubles in 2023, 90.1 rubles in 2024, 91.1 rubles in 2025, 92.3 rubles in 2026.
The share of rubles in Russian exports totaled 41% in July, while in August and September it may grow even higher, Economic Development Minister Maksim Reshetnikov said at a plenary session of the Moscow Financial Forum.
The creation of an alternative to SWIFT will be one of the issues on the agenda of BRICS countries’ meeting next year, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told a forum, adding that a whole number of BRICS members already have their own systems.
78 RUSSIA Country Report October 2023 www.intellinews.com