The Bank of Russia has sharply increased currency rates on July 31. The official dollar exchange rate was set at 73.3633 rubles, which is 1 ruble 12.85 kopecks higher than the previous figure. The official euro rate was increased by 1 ruble 34.12 kopecks to 86.2532 rubles. What is the reason for such a rapid growth of the currency, and how to preserve their savings against the background of exchange rate fluctuations, Izvestia figured out.
Table Of Contents
A blow to the ruble
The crisis caused by the pandemic had a negative impact on the exchange rate of developing countries’ currencies, which include the ruble, the head of the analytical department at AMarkets Artem Deev told Izvestia.
“Until January, prices for the Russian currency supported strong oil quotes above $ 60 per barrel. About $ 42.4 of them went to the Russian budget, the rest of the funds were replenished by the Russian National Welfare Fund (NWF), ”the analyst said.
Now oil is trading around $ 42-44 due to a powerful decline in fuel consumption worldwide, the expert added. During the quarantine period, consumption fell by a third and is now slowly recovering.
“The ruble is under pressure from fears of a second wave of coronavirus and the fear of investors that Washington and Beijing will reintroduce trade duties on their goods. In the past, this has led to a serious drop in oil prices, ”said the economist.
Even one of the most stable currencies, the dollar, is under enormous pressure, he said. Even a decrease in the key rate to almost zero does not help, the American economy is faced with a budget deficit, so the share of the US currency decreased against the euro, which against this background looks more stable and is now more suitable for investment, Deyev noted.
Gold or bitcoin
To preserve your savings against the backdrop of exchange rate fluctuations, you can invest part of the funds in gold, Artem Deev emphasized. The analyst is sure that it will rise in price because it is a safe-haven asset.
At the same time, cryptocurrencies are a more risky option. They are very volatile, and depend on external factors, as well as fluctuations in supply and demand, concluded Deev.
After the March collapse from $ 8.1 thousand to $ 3.8 thousand, the bitcoin rate recovered within a month and a half, and in May approached the annual maximum of $ 10.5 thousand. Despite this, there is no guarantee that the cryptocurrency will withstand the next collapse , writes “RBC” with reference to the CEO of the EXMO exchange Sergey Zhdanov.
Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Russia reported that the country’s international reserves as of July 24 amounted to $ 582.7 billion. Over the week, they increased by $ 8.7 billion.
On April 24, the head of the Central Bank, Elvira Nabiullina, announced that the regulator would not sell the gold reserve, as there was no need for it. She noted that Russia has enough foreign exchange and foreign exchange reserves both to support exports and in relation to the short-term plan.
Nabiullina stressed that gold is a unique reserve asset that is in demand in the modern world and, at the same time, does not depend on the actions of the issuing countries, in contrast to the currency.