Russia Faces Economic Point Of No Return As Ruble Plummets Even Further

The Russian ruble is plummeting to record lows following the weight of Western sanctions.

Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine has accelerated the economic fall of the ruble, which has lost nearly 50 percent of its value since the start of 2022.

At the time of writing, the Russian ruble is now worth 0.0077 cents to the dollar, which is less than a penny.

Many reports are now saying that the country is 'uninvestable'.

Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska has said that Russia's economic crisis is going to be even worse than that of 1998.

He told Forbes: 'This is going to be like the 1998 crisis but three times worse and it will last three years.'

Just yesterday, March 9, McDonald's announced the temporary closure of its restaurants in Russia.

All 850 McDonald's in the country are set to be affected, with CEO Chris Kempczinski sharing the news with the company's employees and franchisees today, March 8.

In the email, shared on Twitter, Kempczinski announced the temporary closure of all restaurants and a pause of all operations in Russia, citing the 'unspeakable suffering to innocent people' in Ukraine.

He continued: 'The conflict in Ukraine and the humanitarian crisis in Europe has caused unspeakable suffering to innocent people.

'As a System, we join the world in condemning aggression and violence and praying for peace. Our number one priority from the start of this crisis has been – and will remain – our people.'

Kempczinski went on to state McDonald's has 'provided immediate financial support to our team in Ukraine', and that it is continuing to pay full salaries for Ukrainian employees as the conflict continues to unfold.

Last week, on March 2, Apple also decided to pause all sales of its physical products in Russia, according to a statement.

The tech giant also opted to limit Apple Pay services and news apps such as RT News and Sputnik News, which 'are no longer available for download from the App Store outside Russia'.

Apple's full statement read: 'We are deeply concerned about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and stand with all of the people who are suffering as a result of the violence.

'We are supporting humanitarian efforts, providing aid for the unfolding refugee crisis, and doing all we can to support our teams in the region.

'We have taken a number of actions in response to the invasion.

'We have paused all product sales in Russia. Last week, we stopped all exports into our sales channel in the country.

'Apple Pay and other services have been limited. RT News and Sputnik News are no longer available for download from the App Store outside Russia.

'And we have disabled both traffic and live incidents in Apple Maps in Ukraine as a safety and precautionary measure for Ukrainian citizens.

'We will continue to evaluate the situation and are in communication with relevant governments on the actions we are taking.

'We join all those around the world who are calling for peace.'

If you would like to donate to the Red Cross Emergency Appeal, which will help provide food, medicines and basic medical supplies, shelter and water to those in Ukraine, click here for more information.