Russia – rouble

The Russian rouble fell on Monday morning to its lowest level against the U.S. dollar in 16 months, falling to just over 100 rubles to buy one U.S. dollar. The drop comes at a time when Russia’s military spending on the war in Ukraine is rising, while at the same time the country is suffering from a collapse in export earnings due to the war in Ukraine. Both are pushing the rouble, as are Western sanctions against the country, according to the Financial Times. Russia’s currency has lost about 25 percent of its value this year. The decline has more than offset the rouble’s rise last year, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was followed by sharp rises in oil and gas prices. /ritzau/