The Russian ruble has made a significant leap, becoming the main currency used for importing goods and services from Asian countries for the first time. This shift marks a major milestone in global trade and highlights Russia’s growing influence in the region. According to the Russian Central Bank, the ruble’s share in settlements for imports from Asia hit a record high of 43.6% in August, up from 42.9% in July. This means that nearly half of all goods imported from Asian countries are now being paid for with the Russian currency.
What makes this even more interesting is that the ruble has now surpassed the use of currencies from Russia’s “friendly” countries (those not aligned with Western sanctions), outpacing them by 0.6 percentage points. This subtle but significant shift shows that the ruble is taking a leading role in payments for goods and services from Asia.
But that’s not all. The ruble has also made gains beyond Asia. It reached a record high of 69.9% in payments for goods from African countries and a staggering 84.3% for goods imported from Oceania. In these regions, the ruble is now the dominant currency, a major achievement in Russia’s quest to expand its financial reach.
Despite these wins, the overall use of the ruble in international trade dropped slightly in August, falling to 44.7% from 45.9% in July. Interestingly, the currencies of Russia’s “friendly” nations also saw a decline, dropping by 2.2 percentage points to 31.2%. This shows that while the ruble is gaining ground in specific regions like Asia, Africa, and Oceania, its global presence in trade is still fluctuating.
However, it wasn’t all good news for the ruble. So-called “toxic” currencies, which include the US dollar and euro—considered “unfriendly” by Russia due to sanctions—actually benefited in August. Their share of Russian imports grew to 24.1%, with the US dollar increasing by 8.3 percentage points and European currencies by 6.9 percentage points. It appears that despite efforts to move away from the dollar-based system, these currencies are still holding strong in some areas of Russian trade.
To put this in perspective, the last time the ruble outpaced “friendly” currencies in trade with Asia was back in February 2022. At that time, “unfriendly” currencies, like the US dollar and euro, were still dominating trade in the region. Today, that dynamic is shifting, with the ruble taking center stage.
Russia’s growing reliance on its own currency is part of a broader effort to reduce dependence on the US dollar. Earlier this month, Russia’s Ambassador to China, Igor Morgulov, revealed that 95% of all transactions between Russia and China are now being carried out without using third-country currencies like the dollar. This shift is part of a larger trend among BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), who are increasingly using their own national currencies in trade. The vice chairman of the BRICS Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Sameep Shastri, recently confirmed that these countries have overtaken the US dollar in their transactions, signaling a major change in the global financial landscape.
The ruble is making waves on the international stage, gaining influence across Asia, Africa, and Oceania, and challenging the dominance of Western currencies. As Russia continues to push for a more multipolar financial world, the rise of the ruble could be just the beginning of a new era in global trade.
