Summary
Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear accord has brought a bonus for the Kremlin. The U.S. president's Iran action means that Russian President Vladimir Putin could make up with the soaring price of oil – the real backbone of the Russian economy and his hold on power – for what he lost from the sanctions.
True, Putin hasn't (yet) gotten rid of the sanctions levied by Congress on Russia and reluctantly implemented by Trump.
By Tuesday it had soared to $78, roughly a 60 percent increase that took place at the same time the U.S. was tightening its sanctions on the Russian economy.
With Russia producing nearly 11 million barrels per day of oil, that means an additional $110 million per day or $40 billion a year in additional revenue.
Russian central bank figures show that the foreign debt of Russian corporations dropped by $11.1 billion in 2016 and $15.2 billion last year.
As Reuters reported last week, Russia is suddenly on track to run a budget surplus this year for the first time since 2011 – mostly attributed to a 65-percent rise in the price of crude, which accounts for 40 percent of the nation's budget revenues.
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