Rouble nears three-week high vs euro, stocks down

The Russian rouble firmed towards a three-week high against the euro in volatile trade on Tuesday but weakened versus the U.S. dollar, while stock indexes inched lower, lacking new drivers and momentum.

The Russian rouble firmed towards a three-week high against the euro in volatile trade on Tuesday but weakened versus the U.S. dollar, while stock indexes inched lower, lacking new drivers and momentum. At 0715 GMT, the rouble gained 0.6% to 59.71 against the euro after hitting 59.1825, its strongest level since May 25. .

Against the dollar, the rouble fell 1.5% to 57.64 but was still close to multi-year peaks, supported by capital controls that Russia imposed in late February after sending tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. After the rouble became the world's best-performing http://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/rngs/GLOBAL-CURRENCIES-PERFORMANCE/0100301V041/index.html currency, authorities eased capital controls and scrapped a requirement for export-focused companies to convert their foreign-currency revenues.

The central bank's decision to cut its key rate to the pre-crisis level of 9.5% last week should also ease upside pressure on the rouble. The rouble strengthening dents the incomes of exporters and Russia's budget but is beneficial for importers that can step up purchases of goods and services abroad. But Russian imports have waned drastically due to unprecedented western sanctions and disrupted logistics chains.

The Moscow Exchange said on Tuesday it will suspend trading the Swiss Franc against the U.S. dollar and the rouble due to the latest sanctions that Switzerland has imposed on Russia from June 10. Russian stock indexes were down.

The dollar-denominated RTS index fell 2% to 1,243.6 points. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index shed 0.6% to 2,273.2 points. For the Russian equities guide see

For Russian treasury bonds see

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