The Russian ruble is seriously undervalued . However, it is not possible to forecast its value within the next year as it will depend on political changes.
The statement was made on Monday, January 14, by Vladimir Mau, President of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, who spoke at a news conference on the Gaidar Forum at TASS.
“Ruble’s fluctuations are determined by political factors, hence they are rather unpredictable. But fundamentally, the ruble is seriously underrated. Based on the Big Mac index, the ruble is 70% underrated as opposed to the dollar. Some economists have different estimates, for example, 65%. Hryvnia is the lowest-rated currency, while ruble is second to last,” the expert noted.
He said that the ruble could cost much more thanks to Russia’s remarkable macroeconomic policy.
“We have achieved a budget surplus of 1.5% GDP as of the end of last year. The state debt is low and almost entirely denominated in the national currency. Most developed countries could only dream of such macroeconomic indicators. However, due to political pressure, the ruble is rated too low,” Vladimir Mau said.
He added that there are many parties who are interested in a weak ruble.
“Exporters and the government are interested in a cheap ruble because it provides large nominal revenues. However, investors are not winning from the low ruble.”