Russia’s Second Junk Rating Sends Ruble Tumbling as Bonds Slide

Russian Eurobonds slid, sending yields up the most in four weeks, and the ruble weakened after the sovereign’s second downgrade to junk this year underpinned the country’s deepening economic slump.

The yield on dollar-denominated bonds due in March 2030 jumped 25 basis points to 5.97 percent at 3:44 p.m. in London after Moody’s Investors Service cut Russia to Ba1 on Friday. Perceptions of the nation’s credit worthiness worsened the most since Standard & Poor’s pushed Russia into speculative territory for the first time in a decade on Jan. 26. The ruble fell 2.4 percent versus the dollar in offshore trading as local markets were shut for a holiday.