The Ruble has 'Collapsed'

On Thursday morning, at the beginning of the auctions, the ruble's exchange rate collapsed following Russian President Vladimir Putin's announcement of a special military operation in Donbas. The dollar jumped above 84 rubles for the first time since January 2016, while the euro surpassed 95 rubles for the first time since December 2014, according to data from Moscow exchanges.

As per calculations at 7:18 AM Moscow time, the dollar's exchange rate rose by nearly 2.92 rubles to reach 84.08 rubles, while the euro increased by 3.54 rubles to 95.24 rubles.

The Russian stock market collapsed by more than 11 percent at the start of Thursday's session after President Putin's announcement regarding the special military operation in Donbas, according to the dynamics of the auctions. The Moscow Exchange announced the suspension of trading at 7:52 AM Moscow time on February 24.

“Trading has been suspended across all markets. An announcement on the resumption will be made later,” the exchange's statement said.