10 April 2004 01:48
Central Bank keeps dollar stable
MOSCOW. March 24 (Interfax) - The dollar remained stable against the ruble Wednesday thanks to intervention from the
Central Bank of Russia, which bought dollars at 28.485 rubles/$1. The euro fell against the ruble due to fears that the
European Central Bank will lower interest rates.
"From the very start of trading, the attack on the dollar was resumed amid surplus dollar supply, but the
Central Bank quickly stepped in to buy at 28.485 rubles/$1 and indicate its interest in a stable market," Dmitry
Lipin of International Industrial bank told Interfax.
"The market is waiting for further decline," he said. Banks thought the Central Bank would stop buying
dollars at the current level after the presidential elections, but this has not happened yet, he said.
A total of $648.357 million changed hands Wednesday, with $121.52
million traded in UTS Today deals, $177.655 million in UTS Tom deals,
The monetary authorities are largely responsible for what happens on the market so it is almost impossible to predict
what will happen, Lipin said. "With stable selling of oil dollars, the market will constantly touch on rock bottom
and as soon as the Central Bank bids are removed the exchange rate will lose five kopecks or more," Lipin said.
"There probably won't be any changes in what is left of the quarter and we will close the month at around
28.485 rubles/$1, a level of almost two months ago," he said.
The dollar's weighted average exchange rate slid 0.25 kopecks to 28.4852 rubles/$1 in UTS Today deals, and 0.03
kopecks to 28.4860 rubles/$1 in Tom deals.
On the interbank currency market, the dollar dropped 0.21 kopecks to 28.4867 rubles/$1 in ordinary Today deals, and
0.1 kopecks to 28.4872 rubles/$1 in Tom deals.
$197.59 million in ordinary Today deals and $151.592 million in Tom deals.
The euro fell against the dollar on the international Forex market after European Central Bank President Jean Claude
Trichet said interest rates might be lowered to spur the economy. The euro saw its biggest slide for three weeks and
dropped to $1.2181.
In euro/ruble trading, the euro dropped 13.63 kopecks to 35.0469 rubles/EUR1 in the UTS. The euro slid to an average
of 34.8892 rubles/EUR1 in the afternoon session. The gap between the euro and the dollar narrowed to 6.5617 rubles.
Banks traded EUR 6.536 million in 214 deals in the UTS and EUR 3.917 million in 40 deals in the afternoon
session.
[Interfax] |
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