USD/RUB finds support near 56.80

The Russian Ruble is gathering extra traction on Tuesday, taking USD/RUB to the area of 56.80, where it is now looking to rebound.

USD/RUB focus on oil, data

Spot is losing ground for the second consecutive session so far amidst a somewhat weaker tone around the buck and a persistent upbeat mood surrounding crude oil prices.

In fact, the barrel of Brent crude is trading in fresh multi-week tops in the boundaries of the $56.00 mark, extending the strong rebound from 2017 lows in sub-$50.00 levels seen in late March.

In addition, the speculative community continues to lend additional support to RUB, as net longs have climbed to the highest level since mid-December 2016 on the week to April 4, according to the latest CFTC report.

On the opposite side, further gains in RUB faces a potential bumpy road in light of the increasing effervescence in the Middle East, particularly after the recent US attack to a Syrian airbase.

Data wise, February’s Russian trade balance figures are due later ahead of US JOLTs Job Openings and the speech by Minneapolis Fed N.Kashkari (voter, dovish). Previously, CBR’s Deputy Governor K.Yudaeva said the country could hit the 4% inflation target earlier than expected.

USD/RUB levels to watch

At the moment the pair is losing 0.41% at 56.94 and a break below 56.39 (low Apr.7) would open the door to 56.18 (low Apr.6) and finally 55.80 (2017 low Apr.4). On the other hand, the immediate up barrier aligns at 57.17 (high Apr.11) followed by 57.55 (high Apr.10) and finally 58.11 (55-day sma).