Rouble steady, market eyes Russia-US meetings

MOSCOW: The Russian rouble lacked momentum and was steady on Tuesday, watching meetings between Russian and U.S. officials and a recovery in oil prices.

The rouble was little changed at 62.75 versus the dollar as of 0819 GMT and firmed 0.2 percent to 73.26 against the euro.

Moves in the rouble generally matched the dynamics described by Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Anton Siluanov who said late on Monday he did not expect substantial fluctuations to transpire in the rouble exchange rate.

"The mechanism was created which allows to keep the rouble rate stable against foreign currencies," Siluanov said in an interview with state TV, referring to the finance ministry's budget rule.

The finance ministry buys foreign currency for reserves, putting pressure on the rouble, when average oil prices stay above $40 per barrel. The ministry is expected to reverse flows and start selling dollars from state coffers if oil prices slide below the $40 mark.

Brent crude oil, a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was up 0.5 percent at $75.12 a barrel.

Moscow's relations with the West remained in focus. U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry will meet Russia's energy minister this week in Washington, according to a person familiar with the situation, as the two countries compete to supply global markets with natural gas and crude.

U.S. national security adviser John Bolton is also visiting Moscow this week.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last week Bolton was planning to travel to Moscow on Sunday or Monday and that he expected that the visit would lead to a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Russian stock indexes inched higher. The dollar-denominated RTS index was up 0.3 percent to 1,123.73 points, while rouble-based MOEX Russian index was 0.1 percent higher at 2,238.5 points.