Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 19, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 24, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleRussia's oil price in roubles is 24% below the budget target for March, driven by a stronger rouble and lower global oil prices, increasing budgetary strain.
MOSCOW (Reuters) - The price of Russia's oil blend in roubles so far in March is on average around 24% below the level targeted in the federal budget for 2025 due to the currency's firming and weaker global oil prices, according to Reuters calculations.
The drop will likely cause more strain on the budget, already under pressure from high military spending.
The rouble has rallied since the middle of January amid hopes of a settlement to the conflict in Ukraine.
It has averaged 87.4 per $1 so far this month, from 92.9 roubles in February.
Russia is using a basket of Urals and more expensive ESPO Blend crudes when calculating the average price of Russia's oil blend for taxation.
At the same time, the price of Russia's flagship Urals crude has declined to $58.14 per barrel this month from $61.69 per barrel in February.
According to Reuters calculations, the Urals price may average around 4,975 roubles per barrel in March, down 26% from the 6,726 roubles projected in the federal budget and almost 14% lower than February's 5,733 roubles.
(Reporting by Reuters. Editing by Mark Potter)
The article discusses the drop in Russia's oil price in roubles, which is 24% below the budget target for March.
The rouble has strengthened since January due to hopes of a settlement in the Ukraine conflict.
The drop in oil prices increases strain on Russia's budget, already pressured by high military spending.
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