As the Ruble Recovers, Putin Spins Economic Cheer

In one of his semi-annual choreographed question-and–answer sessions with the Russian people last week, President Vladimir Putin exuded confidence about the future of the Russian economy. The dramatic drop in oil prices over the past year and the plunging value of the ruble combined with international sanctions imposed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula last year might look like a disaster, he said, but they will ultimately drive Russia to new economic heights. Also promising was the continued growth in the Russian ruble’s value against global benchmark currencies. All that said, the state of the Russian economy might best be compared to a patient who has been removed from the intensive care unit, but remains in critical condition, as more recent news revealed this week demonstrated.

via Business News http://ift.tt/1JqFPQA