Wood
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Russia says it has slowed inflation and kept unemployment steady despite the West's sanctions. 2 experts break down Putin's spin on the numbers.
President Putin's regime makes exporters convert their earnings into rubles. Companies exiting Russia are winding down businesses in an orderly way.
www.businessinsider.com
Moscow has managed to prop up the ruble through a slate of capital control measures, including ordering companies to convert up to 80% of their foreign currency earnings into rubles. The energy powerhouse has also managed to compel Western European companies, such as German energy giant Uniper and Italy's Eni, to open special accounts to pay for their Russian natural gas imports in rubles — or risk their fuel getting cut off. The moves generate demand for Russian rubles and support its value, keeping inflation in check.
A drop in exports also helped to support the ruble as importers now have less demand for foreign currencies, the Russian central bank wrote in a May report, as reported by Interfax.