China Is Trumping Russia in Currency Tug-of-War

News Snapshot:

African countries are turning away from the Russian currency, the ruble, to pay for goods they import from Russia, with the Chinese currency instead taking precedence. The Russian business newspaper RBC reported a sharp dip over the past year in the use of the ruble among African countries buying Russian products, as they instead turn to the yuan in search of flexibility, stability and safety. The publication cited the country's central bank statistics, which showed how the share of ruble payments for Russian exports to Africa tumbled from 23.7 percent in July 2022 to 12.7 percent in July 2023. Over...