The rouble fell to its lowest level in more than a year yesterday as Russians faced the prospect of a second year of economic recession in 2016 amid continued oil price weakness.
The Russian economy is expected to contract 3.7 per cent this year, hit by falling oil prices and western sanctions, despite official suggestions previously that the situation was stabilising with President Vladimir Putin saying the “peak of the crisis” had passed.
The latest decline in the oil price has tempered those optimistic expectations and senior figures in the Russian political and business elite warned this week that the country should brace itself for another year of recession in 2016.