Russia eases obligation to sell foreign currency

By Emre Gurkan Abay

MOSCOW (AA) - Some Russian exporters will no longer have to sell their foreign currency earnings as of Monday, roughly a year after the obligation was introduced to fend off the effects of Western sanctions.

According to a decree by President Vladimir Putin, companies exporting under intergovernmental agreements will be exempt from the requirement.

In February 2022, the Russian Finance Ministry obliged Russian exporters to sell 80% of their foreign exchange earnings after Western sanctions froze half of the Russian Central Bank's overseas reserves of foreign currency in response to the war in Ukraine.

That ratio had been reduced to 50% in May last year.

*Writing by Gokhan Ergocun from Istanbul