Russian central bank cuts own forex sales from 2026, withdrawing some support for rouble

MOSCOW, Dec 26 (Reuters) – Russia’s central bank said on Friday that it will halve its own forex interventions from the new year in an expected move that will take away some support for the rouble in 2026, with economists expecting the rouble to weaken. The combined forex sales by the central bank and the Finance Ministry were one of the factors behind the rouble’s strength in 2025 and were criticized by exporting firms, whose earnings were hit by the rouble’s 45% rally this year. Sign up here. The central bank said that in the first half of 2026 it…