On March 23, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would use rubles for settlement when supplying natural gas to "unfriendly" countries and regions such as the United States and Europe. On the 28th, the group of seven issued a statement refusing to use the ruble to buy Russian energy products, insisting that Russia's actions violated relevant contracts. On April 1, German Chancellor Scholz reiterated his refusal to settle natural gas in rubles. At present, Russia has not stopped supplying natural gas to Europe. Russia said that during the pending period of ruble payment, it will continue to transport natural gas, and all energy and commodity exports may be priced and settled in rubles in the future. As of April 4, Slovakia has become the first EU and NATO member state to agree to pay for natural gas in rubles, while other EU countries are still on the sidelines. "Ruble breath" is Russia's counterattack to western economic sanctions, which triggered concerns about the European energy crisis and rising inflation. Since the announcement of the decision, the price of natural gas in Europe has risen by 34%, and BASF warned that if the supply of natural gas is insufficient, it will close the world's largest chemical base in Europe. The Russian ruble, which almost collapsed under Western sanctions, has stopped falling and rebounded, and is now gradually approaching the pre conflict level. In the long run, the "ruble breath" is also an impact on the hegemony of the US dollar, which has fired the "first shot" of global de dollarization.
© China Stock Market News