Exchanges in red, hard trading. Bank of England raises interest rates

Russia paid interest in dollars on overdue bonds

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said in an interview with the Russian state television network today that his country paid interest on the two dollar bonds, which should have been paid on Wednesday. Russia had to pay 117 million dollars Interest on two issues denominated in US dollars. The minister added, “The possibility or impossibility of completing the payment in foreign currency does not depend on us,” explaining that “we have the money, we made the payment and now the ball is in the other field, especially in the field of the American authorities.”

Earlier, the same Russian funder indicated the possibility that Moscow paid interest payments on bonds in rubles With the consequent declaration of Russia in case of default. Siluanov then determined that the funds were paid into a foreign currency account that was opened in a US bank but that for the time being There was no confirmation that the transaction was executed. The anvil has a grace period of 30 days, therefore, in the event of unsuccessful repayment, the declaration of default by the creditors cannot be submitted before the next April 15th.

Oil, Brent crude rose to 104 dollars and West Texas Intermediate to 100 dollars

Crude oil purchases are back, after falling today, with Brent reclaiming the $104 threshold while WTI reclaimed $100. On Wednesday, March 16th session, with the unexpected increase in US stocks and hopes for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, prices approached pre-conflict levels, as Brent crude was in the region of $98 and West Texas Intermediate crude in the region of $95. However, it came from signs of concernInternational Energy Agency Which said markets could be shocked and lose three million barrels per day of Russian crude oil and refined products by April, much more than estimates so far.

«The Agency is planning Sharp decline in Russian production Starting in April (about 25%) due to the impact of sanctions and reduced exports from the country – say Mps Capital Services analysts – there was a downward adjustment on both demand and production for the following quarters with the scenario of a possible global production deficit if major producers do not take measures to compensate Russia ». tighten natural gas price That moves around 110 euros per megawatt-hour (+7%).

Gold soared to $1,940 after the Fed

Gold rose in European markets, with the precious metal moving around $1,940 an ounce, after being on the eve of three-week lows and as the dollar eased. The Fed raised borrowing costs by 25 basis points as expected, the first in a series projected for 2022, while interest remains high in the Ukraine conflict and negotiations. even strong Palladium at $2,470 an ounce (+2.5%).