MOSCOW: Russia's rouble traded firmer on Thursday, helped by a modest uptick in oil prices and exporters selling forex for upcoming rouble-denominated tax payments.
At 0720 GMT, the rouble was 0.4 percent stronger against the dollar at 62.75 and had gained 0.6 percent to 71.02 versus the euro.
Brent crude oil, a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was up 0.5 percent at $48.1 a barrel.
The bulk of Russia's monthly taxes fall due next week, including value-added tax and mineral extraction tax, meaning exporters are converting a portion of their dollar revenues to accumulate roubles for the taxes.
"We believe that export support will be noticeable for a few more days," Maxim Korovin, a forex analyst at VTB Capital, said in a note.
The Russian currency is around 2 percent weaker against the dollar since the start of the week, mainly due to falls in the price of oil. But exporter forex sales and a relatively light foreign debt repayment schedule in October have checked losses.
Russian share indexes fell on Thursday, mirroring falls elsewhere on global markets.
The dollar-denominated RTS index was down 0.2 percent to 854 points, while the rouble-based MICEX was 0.3 percent lower at 1,704 points.
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