Economics
Putin Is Facing Down OPEC Because His Economy Can Take The Pain
- Russia in better shape than before to cope with low oil prices
- Russia resisted pressure to make deeper production cuts
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Vladimir Putin’s resistance to further output cuts has pushed Russia’s accord with the OPEC cartel that controls more than half of the world’s oil production toward breakdown. Some key metrics guiding the Russian economy help explain the president’s reasoning.
“Thanks to Russia taking harsh measures earlier, Russia can now afford a lower oil price than five to six years ago,” said Dmitry Dolgin, chief economist at ING Bank in Moscow.