Rouble falls past 77 vs dollar as geopolitical concerns mount

MOSCOW: The Russian rouble dropped on Tuesday to its weakest since November against the dollar, amid concern about a new wave of tension between Russia and the West and the threat of more sanctions against Moscow.

At 1302 GMT, the rouble fell 1.1% to 77.24 against the dollar after hitting 77.3450, a level last seen on Nov. 13 .

Versus the euro, the rouble slid 1.1% to 91.29 , its weakest since early February.

The rouble was hit by increased demand for dollars, which could have been triggered by Tuesday's news that Russia began a planned "combat readiness" inspection of its army, a forex trader at a major Russian bank said.

Geopolitical concerns are growing after NATO voiced concern last week over what it said was a Russian military build-up near eastern Ukraine and Russia said a serious escalation in the conflict in Ukraine's Donbass region could "destroy" Ukraine.

The Kremlin said on Monday the Russian military movements near the border posed no threat to Ukraine or anyone else and that Moscow moved troops around its country as it saw fit.

The sanction threat has pressured Russian assets for months. Such risks intensified in the second half of March when U.S. President Joe Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin would "pay a price" for meddling in U.S. elections and cyber-hacking, allegations that Moscow denies.

The geopolitical premium paid for the rouble remains significant. In early 2020, when oil prices, one of the main drivers of the rouble's exchange rate, were near current levels around $63 a barrel, the rouble stood around 61 to the dollar and 68 against the euro.

Brent crude oil, a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was up 1.8% at $63.25 a barrel. But that failed to help Russian stock indexes.

The dollar-denominated RTS index was down 2% to 1,428.0 points. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index fell 0.7% to 3,499.9 points, heading away from a record high of 3,602.18 hit last month.