REMAINS AT 20%, DOUBLE THE RATE
BEFORE THE INVASION, AS THE
VALUE OF THE RUBLE CONTINUES TO
PLUNGE TO RECORD LOWS.
104 RUBLES TO ONE U.S. DOLLAR.
JOINING ME NOW IS FINANCIAL
JOURNALIST BENJAMIN WALSH.
BENJAMIN, THANK YOU FOR COMING
TO "THE SUNDAY SHOW."
TALK TO ME ABOUT THE
SIGNIFICANCE OF RUSSIA'S
REOPENING THE MOSCOW EXCHANGE
FOR JUST FEDERAL LOAN TRADING.
>> RIGHT, I THINK SYMBOLICALLY
IT IS IMPORTANT FOR THE RUSSIAN
GOVERNMENT TO DO THAT.
I THINK THAT IT IS SIGNIFICANT
AS YOU MENTIONED THAT IT'S JUST
FEDERAL BONDS.
SO OBVIOUSLY A LOT OF PEOPLE IN
THE DAYS AFTER THE INVASION WERE
SORT OF WONDERING WHAT IS GOING
TO HAPPEN WITH THE RUSSIAN STOCK
MARKET AND, YOU KNOW, THE SHARES
OF RUSSIAN COMPANIES THAT ARE
LISTED THERE.
AND WE STILL DON'T HAVE AN
ANSWER TO THAT, AND THAT'S
SOMETHING THAT I THINK, YOU
KNOW, THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT AND
FINANCIAL REGULATORS DON'T HAVE
A SOLUTION TO RIGHT NOW BECAUSE
TONS AND TONS OF WESTERN
INVESTORS WHO MAKE UP ABOUT
SOMETHING LIKE HALF OF THE
INVESTORS IN THE RUSSIAN STOCK
MARKET, HAVE SAID, WE'RE GETTING
OUT OF RUSSIAN COMPANY
INVESTMENTS.
AND HAVE BASICALLY DECIDED THAT
THOSE ASSETS ARE NOW WORTH ZERO
AND ARE WILLING TO SELL THEM FOR
THAT.
AND SO I DON'T SEE YET THAT THE
RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT HAS A PLAN TO
OPEN THE STOCK MARKET IN A WAY
THAT WOULD BE ANYTHING SHORT OF
A CATASTROPHE.
>> RIGHT.
BENJAMIN, HALF OF RUSSIA'S
ASSETS THAT ARE CURRENTLY NOT
FROZEN BECAUSE OF WESTERN
SANCTIONS ARE IN GOLD AND
CHINESE YUAN.
IS RUSSIA'S ECONOMY NOW RELIANT
ON CHINA?
>> WELL, IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO
UNENTANGLE THE RUSSIAN ECONOMY
FROM EUROPE.
THEY ARE OBVIOUSLY A LARGE
PORTION OF RUSSIA IS LITERALLY
PHYSICALLY IN EUROPE.
AND THEN THOSE WERE THEIR
CLOSEST AND ECONOMIC TRADING
PARTNERS.
SO TO THE EXTENT THAT RUSSIA IS
NOW DEPENDENT ON CHINA, IT'S A
GEOPOLITICAL RELIANCE, AND THEY
ARE ABSOLUTELY GOING TO TRY TO
SHIFT THEIR ECONOMIC ACTIVITY
TOWARDS CHINA, BUT THAT'S NOT
SOMETHING THAT CAN BE DONE IN A
MATTER OF WEEKS, AND CERTAINLY
NOT DONE IN A MATTER OF WEEKS
UNDER THE KIND OF CRISIS
SCENARIO THAT WE'VE SEEN DURING
THE WAR.
SO TO THE EXTENT THAT RUSSIA IS
RELYING ON CHINA IT'S FOR
SHORT-TERM THINGS LIKE AIRPLANE
PARTS, THAT SORT OF THING.
IT'S HARD TO RAMP UP, YOU KNOW,
NORMAL BUSINESS TRADING ACTIVITY
ON THE SCALE THAT THEY NEED TO
IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.
>> YOU KNOW, REAL QUICKLY, THERE
WERE REPORTS LAST WEEK,
INTELLIGENCE REPORTS, THAT THE
RUSSIANS HAD TURNED TO BEIJING,
ASKING SPECIFICALLY FOR MILITARY
AND ECONOMIC HELP IN ITS WAR ON
UKRAINE.
HOW LIKELY IS IT THAT CHINA
WOULD COME TO RUSSIA'S ECONOMIC
RESCUE IF ASKED?
>> I THINK THAT IT IS, IT IS
LIKELY THEY WILL PROVIDE SOME
SORT OF ECONOMIC AID.
I THINK IF THEY'RE WALKING A
TIGHT ROPE, XI JINPING IS NOT
GOING TO BE HEARTENED BY THE
GLOBAL RESPONSE IN TERMS OF THE
SANCTIONS AND THE RHETORIC
THAT'S BEEN DIRECTED AT RUSSIA.
I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, TO THE
EXTENT THAT RUSSIA IS NOW
SOMETHING LIKE A KIND OF
INTERNATIONAL PARIAH STATE ON
THE KIND OF SCALE OF IRAN OR
NORTH KOREA, I THINK THAT XI
JINPING IS GOING TO WANT TO
WEIGH A RELATIONSHIP WITH PUTIN
VERY DELICATELY AND IS NOT GOING
TO WANT TO BE SEEN TO