Rouble hits record low vs dollar

The Russian rouble slumped to an eight-month low against the dollar on Thursday, struggling under the weight of expectations that sanctions on Russian oil and gas may limit export revenues.

By 0717 GMT, the rouble was 0.9 per cent weaker against the dollar at 72.83, its weakest point since April 27.

It lost 0.7 per cent to trade at 76.93 versus the euro and shed 0.6 per cent against the yuan to 10.31 .

The rouble has now lost the key support of a month-end tax period that usually sees exporters convert foreign currency revenues into roubles to pay domestic liabilities, while recovering imports have combined with falling exports to also exert pressure.