USD/RUB treading water around 57.80

The greenback is trading within a tight range vs. the Russian currency on Wednesday, taking USD/RUB to the 57.80/85 band for the time being.

USD/RUB testing 4-day lows

The pair is struggling for direction in the middle of the week after two consecutive daily pullbacks, all amidst a sharp correction lower in crude oil prices and the now upbeat tone around the greenback.

RUB stays apathetic despite the barrel of the European reference Brent crude is down over 1% to the $56.00 neighbourhood, while upbeat results in the US docket keep the buck underpinned. In fact, US producer prices for the month of September came in on the strong side, rising optimism among traders over the prospects for inflation in the US economy.

In the Russian docket, FX reserves held by the CBR dropped a tad to $423.3 billion WoW from $424.0 billion, while the trade surplus in August widened to $6.61 billion, surpassing initial estimates at the same time.

USD/RUB levels to watch

At the moment the pair is losing 0.05% at 57.80 and a break below 57.39 (low Oct.5) would aim for 57.24 (low Sep.25) and then 56.79 (low Sep.7). On the upside, the initial hurdle emerges at 58.31 (200-day sma) seconded by 58.50 (high Oct.9) and finally 58.57 (high Sep.28).