Russian President Vladimir Putin has banned trading in US dollars at all Russian seaports as part of an effort to completely eradicate the dollar in Russia.
As of 2018, the ruble will become the main currency of exchange at all Russian seaports, according to the Kremlin.
Rt.com reports: According to the head of Russian antitrust watchdog FAS Igor Artemyev, many services in Russian seaports are still priced in US dollars, even though such ports are state-owned.
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The proposal to switch port tariffs to rubles was first proposed by the president a year and a half ago. The idea was not embraced by large transport companies, which would like to keep revenues in dollars and other foreign currencies because of fluctuations in the ruble.
Artemyev said the decision will force foreigners to buy Russian currency, which is good for the ruble.
In 2016, his agency filed several lawsuits against the largest Russian port group NMTP. According to FAS, the group of companies set tariffs for transshipment in dollars and raised tariffs from January 2015 “without objective grounds.”
The watchdog ruled that NMTP abused its dominant position in the market and imposed a 9.74 billion rubles fine, or about $165 million at the current exchange rate. The decision was overturned by a court in Moscow in July this year.
Sean Adl-Tabatabai
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