On Thursday, oil prices plunged to a four-year low. And that has the potential to be very bad for Russia's economy. Russia is the world's largest energy exporter, and gets roughly half of its revenue from taxes on oil and natural gas.
Vladimir Putin seems to be taking the threat of slumping oil prices very seriously.
"We're considering all the scenarios, including the so-called catastrophic fall of prices for energy resources, which is entirely possible, and we admit it," Putin said in an interview with the state-run Tass news service before attending this weekend's Group of 20 summit in Brisbane, Australia, according to a transcript emailed by the Kremlin today. [Bloomberg]
Putin also offered assurances that Russia would be able to handle even a catastrophic slump because it has more than $400 billion in its reserves. Read more at Bloomberg.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
'Enforcement of rulings remains spotty at best'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Book reviews: 'King of Kings: The Iranian Revolution' and 'Gwyneth: The Biography'Feature How the Iranian Revolution began and Gwyneth Paltrow's life in the spotlight
-
Garrett Graff's 6 favorite books that shine new light on World War IIFeature The author recommends works by James D. Hornfischer, Craig L. Symonds, and more
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstancesSpeed Read
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2Speed Read
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governorSpeed Read
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditionsSpeed Read
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billionSpeed Read
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on recordSpeed Read
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homesSpeed Read
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creatureSpeed Read
