Russian ruble hits new dollar low despite rate rise

MOSCOW, Nov 1 (AFP): The ruble hit a new record low on Friday, falling to more than 43 rubles to the dollar, despite defensive action by the central bank which raised interest rates a short time earlier.

The ruble was trading at 43.03 to the dollar at around 1330 GMT, after strengthening slightly on Thursday following central bank intervention and briefly on Friday after the central bank raised its key rate to 9.5 per cent from 8.0 per cent.

The ruble has fallen in value by more than a fifth this year despite a number of interventions by the central bank costing billions of dollars.