Ruble loses 20pc, crashes to 100 to euro, 80 to dollar

MOSCOW: The Russian ruble crashed to new record lows Tuesday, losing some 20 percent in value by the afternoon despite drastic overnight measures by the central bank to hike the key rate.

The ruble hit 80 to the dollar and 100 to the euro on the Moscow Exchange. Overall the Russian currency has lost nearly 60 percent of its value since the start of the year.

The RTS index of the Moscow Exchange fell by 17 percent, to its lowest point since 2009. "We are clearly seeing a speculative attack on the ruble," an analyst with VTB24 bank Alexei Mikheyev told AFP.