Russian rouble up 3.6% vs US dollar in 2026, helped by new Ukraine peace talks

MOSCOW, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The Russian rouble strengthened by 3.6% against the U.S. dollar so far in January, mostly on new hopes for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine as U.S., Russian and Ukrainian negotiators were due to sit down for talks in the United Arab Emirates.

After President Vladimir Putin met with U.S. representatives in the Kremlin on December 22, negotiators from Russia and Ukraine will discuss the key issue of territory during two days of talks in Abu Dhabi.

By 1215 GMT, the rouble traded flat at 76 roubles for one dollar, after strengthening by 1.3% during the Thursday session, ahead of the visit by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.

As a result of Western sanctions, the dollar is trading in the over-the-counter market in relatively small volumes compared to the pre-war period, while China's yuan, now the most traded foreign currency in Russia, is trading on the Moscow Exchange.

The finance ministry doubled the sales of foreign currency from the National Wealth Fund in January, in a move which also supported the rouble.

"The rouble exchange rate has been rising since the beginning of the year. We partly associate this with how market participants perceive the geopolitical context," Alfa Investment analysts wrote in a research note.

The rouble is trading at the strongest level against the dollar since December 5, 2025. The rouble weakened by 0.3% to 10.86 against China's yuan on Friday but surged by 3.5% in January.

"Investors did not see reasons for either optimism or disappointment in the talks' outcome, so now all attention will be focused on the meeting in the UAE. Against this backdrop, the market may react to any rumour," BCS brokerage analysts said.