Consider two reports. The American website Bloomberg reports that the Russian currency ruble has turned out to be the best performing currency in the world so far this year. On the other hand, the famous London magazine The Economist has predicted that Russia will record record profits this year. So the question arises whether the sanctions imposed on Russia by Western countries are counterproductive? On the one hand, sanctions have led to increased inflation and economic problems in Western countries. While the Russian economy seems to have picked up in some respects. Bloomberg has said Russia saved the ruble from collapse by pursuing a policy of capital controls. Last week, the ruble was 11 percent higher against the US dollar than at the beginning of the year. The currency of no other country in the world has not appreciated so much this year. Bloomberg comes to this conclusion based on an assessment of the currencies of 31 countries.
The Economist has said in a report that while Russia has stopped releasing monthly trade data, data from countries that trade with it indicate that Russia’s trade advantage is rapidly increasing. Last May 9, China reported that exports to Russia had fallen by about 25 percent. But imports from Russia have increased by 56 percent. German exports to Russia fell by 62 percent in March. While imports from Russia there fell by only three percent. A similar trend is observed in eight of Russia’s largest trading partners. According to him, exports to Russia have decreased by 44 percent, while imports from Russia have increased by 8 percent. When Western countries imposed harsh sanctions on Russia, the value of the ruble fell dramatically. But later the Russian Central Bank took over. The question is, will this profitable position be sustainable? If this happens, a difficult situation could arise for the West.