JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ruble plummets as sanctions bite, sending Russians to banks” – AP
“… Russians faced … [potentially] higher prices and crimped foreign travel as Western sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine sent the ruble plummeting, leading uneasy people to line up at banks and ATMs … [Post-Soviet Russia already] has seen more than one currency disaster …. The [ruble] plunged about 30% against the U.S. dollar after Western nations announced moves to block some Russian banks from … SWIFT … and … restrict Russia’s use of … foreign currency reserves. The exchange rate … recovered ground after … action by Russia’s central bank. But the economic squeeze got tighter when the U.S. announced more sanctions … to immobilize … assets of the Russian central bank in the United States or held by Americans. …”