Russians flock to stores to pre-empt price rises

Russian consumers flocked to the stores Wednesday, frantically buying a range of big-ticket items to pre-empt the price rises kicked off by the staggering fall in the value of the ruble in recent days.

As the Russian authorities announced a series of measures to ease the pressure on the ruble, which slid 15 percent in the previous two days and raised fears of a bank run, many Russians were buying cars and home appliances in some cases in record numbers before prices for these imported goods shoot higher.

The Swedish furniture giant IKEA already warned Russian consumers that

Russia plans new measures to stabilise the rouble

Russia is planning new measures aimed at stabilising its financial markets after the rouble's slump against the dollar.

The country's central bank said that if necessary, it would provide additional capital to Russia's banks and financial companies.

It also said it would hold more foreign exchange auctions if needed.

Russia's rouble has regained ground from Tuesday's all-time low, although trading remains edgy and volatile.

It extended its gains against the dollar after the

Rouble turmoil leads to Apple halting online sales in Russia

Technology giant Apple says it cannot sell products online in Russia because the rouble's value is too volatile for it to set prices.

The company stopped sales of its iPhones, iPads and other products in the country after a day in which the currency went into free-fall.

The rouble has lost more than 20% this week, despite a dramatic decision to raise interest rates from 10.5% to 17%.

Early on Wednesday, the rouble was

Rouble falls as oil price hits five-year low

Oil prices fell to a five-year low on Monday, sending the rouble tumbling, while fears over slowing manufacturing activity in Europe and China undermined global confidence.

The Russian currency slid as much as 6% against the dollar to a new record low.

The rouble was on track for its biggest one-day fall since Russia's 1998 currency crisis.

Brent crude sunk as low as $67.53 a barrel, the cheapest it has been since October 2009.

It later regained some ground to trade just above $70 a barrel, while US crude was at $66.34 a barrel, having hit an intraday low of $63.72 - the lowest since July 2009.

Oil prices have fallen by more than