Russian rouble slips after firming up in previous session

The Russian rouble opened weaker on Friday following an increase in the previous trading day before the long weekend in the United States. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index was 0.1% higher at 3,231 points.

The Russian rouble opened weaker on Friday following an increase in the previous trading day before the long weekend in the United States. At 0651 GMT, the rouble was 0.25% weaker against the dollar at 96.26 and had lost 0.3% to trade at 104.4 versus the euro. It had shed 0.4% against the yuan to 13.2.

The rouble declined by almost 5% to the U.S. dollar in August, extending the losing streak to seven months in a row - the longest since 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine. The Russian currency has been under downward pressure from geopolitical risks as well as declining current account surplus and other negative factors for the rouble.

Brent crude oil, a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was up 26 cents, or 0.3%, at $87.09 a barrel due to tightening supplies and expectations that the OPEC+ group of oil producers would extend output cuts to the end of the year. Russian stock indexes were mixed in early trade.

The dollar-denominated RTS index was down 0.3% to 1,056 points. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index was 0.1% higher at 3,231 points. For Russian equities guide see

For Russian treasury bonds see