The Russian ruble fell to a record low against the euro and a five-year low against the dollar on Wednesday amid fears of a Ukrainian default as the hryvnia collapsed. The euro surged to 49.46 rubles at around 0940 GMT, breaking the record set last week of 49.35 rubles. The dollar rose to 36.0015 rubles, its highest rate since March 2009. It was already approaching its 2009 record of 36.72 rubles.
The ruble has lost more than eight percent against the euro since the start of the year, as investors are reluctant to put money into emerging economies and Russia's economic activity has slowed. Analysts at VTB Capital said that "tensions over Ukraine once again started weighing on the ruble."
Standard & Poor's ratings agency last week lowered Ukraine's rating to CCC from CCC+, indicating that the country is close to default, while Russian banks are greatly exposed to the crisis-hit ex-Soviet country. Ukraine's new authorities have warned that the country is in dire need of international financial help following the sudden ousting of president Viktor Yanukovych last week.