MOSCOW, 20 April (BelTA) – The Eurasian Economic Commission expects the share of national currencies in mutual trade between the Eurasian Economic Union member states to rise to 85% and beyond by the end of 2022, BelTA learned from Iya Malkina, a spokeswoman of the Eurasian Economic Commission.
Iya Malkina said: “The broader usage of national currencies in transactions in mutual trade is one of the measures designed to bolster the stability of the EAEU economies. The share of national currencies in domestic mutual transactions is gradually rising: from 63% in 2013 to 74% according to the latest reports. The share of the U.S. dollar has dropped from 30% in 2013 to 19% in 2021. The Russian ruble is the dominating currency.”
The official noted that the share of the Kazakhstani tenge in Kyrgyzstan-Kazakhstan payments is on the rise – up from 15% in 2013 to 24% in 2021.
According to the source, a number of practical steps to encourage transition to the national currencies have already been made. For instance, Armenia now pays for Russian natural gas with rubles. Prime Minister of Belarus Roman Golovchenko also mentioned the country's transition to rubles in payments for oil and natural gas. Energy resources account for a large share of mutual trade. If transition to payments in national currencies is successful, the commission expects their share to rise to 85% and beyond, Iya Malkina said.
