Trump's Tweets Make Russia's Top Export More Valuable Than Ever

(Bloomberg) -- They might just be rolling in the aisles over at the Russian Finance Ministry.

A budget windfall could be on the way. Donald Trump’s gleeful warning that Russia should “get ready” for a missile barrage in Syria sent the ruble to its lowest level in 16 months. At the same time, it unnerved oil traders, who pushed the price of Brent to a more than three-year high on fears of supply disruptions.

Result? A barrel of crude has never brought in so many rubles for the Russian budget. That means the Finance Ministry has more local currency on hand to pay teachers’ wages, or, indeed, to upgrade its military hardware. The better to counter those “smart” missiles Trump promised.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Nicholson in Moscow at anicholson6@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Dana El Baltaji at delbaltaji@bloomberg.net, Alex Nicholson, Paul Abelsky

©2018 Bloomberg L.P.