Ruble strengthens after agreement reached in Minsk

The Russian ruble rose against the euro and dollar today after Minsk talks reached an agreement on a Ukraine ceasefire and a buffer zone between pro-Russian separatist fighters and Kiev government forces.
The ruble strengthened against the dollar, which was worth 64.85 rubles at around 1000 GMT, compared with 65.25 rubles late yesterday.
The ruble rose against the euro, which was worth 73.61 rubles, down from 73.95 rubles on Wednesday evening.
The dollar-denominated RTS index was up 5.33 percent and the ruble-denominated Micex was up 2.34 percent.
The ruble had fallen sharply today morning when Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that Russia was setting unacceptable conditions at the talks.

The conflict in Ukraine has led to unprecedented international sanctions against Russia, whose economy is expected to go into deep recession this year.
The ruble lost half its value against the dollar in the course of last year, due to the sanctions and falling oil prices, sparking inflation.