MOSCOW: The rouble firmed slightly against the dollar on Thursday on the back of higher oil prices and month-end tax payments that usually boost companies' demand for the Russian currency.
The rouble gained 0.2 percent to 65.53 versus the dollar at 0723 GMT and 0.3 percent to 74.26 versus the euro .
The rouble received support from companies needing to pay up to 1.8 trillion roubles ($27.48 billion) in taxes in February, according to a Reuters survey of analysts.
On the flip side, the rouble gains were limited by lingering risks of more Western sanctions against Moscow and the Russian central bank that keeps buying foreign currency for the state reserves.
The rouble is likely to stabilise within a range of 65.50-66.00 versus the dollar in the near term, Promsvyazbank analysts said in a note.
But the currency looks undervalued and could strengthen by the end of the first quarter if sanctions risks do not increase and sentiment towards emerging markets does not get worse, Promsvyazbank said.
Prices for oil supported Russian markets as Brent crude futures traded near 2019 highs at $67.18 per barrel, up 0.2 percent on the day.
The dollar-denominated RTS index rose 0.3 percent to 1,198.2, while the rouble-based MOEX Russian index was 0.2 percent higher at 2,491.2 points.
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