Russia Raises
Value of Ruble
MOSCOW, UP) — The Soviet :
Union declared today that its new J
heavy ruble will be worth more
than the dollar. Western economic
experts in Moscow said the chief
motive probably was prestige.
Under a decree the official rate
of exchange will be changed Jan.
1 from four rubles for $1 to one
ruble for $1.11. The Soviet gov
ernment said the new rate would
reflect a fourfold increase of the
ruble to be put into effect on
that date.
However, the ruble that will be
put into circulation at that time
is being exchanged for 10 of the
present rubles.
The official Soviet news agency
Tass said in its announcement of
the currency revaluation that the
State Bank was instructed “to in
crease the rate of exchange of
the ruble with the currency of
other capitalist countries in com
formity with the higher gold con
tent of the ruble.”
That content is going from .22
grams in the old ruble to .98
grams in the new.
Western economists here said
prestige was more likely one of
the motives for the currency re
valuation because of the weak
ness the dollar has shown recent
ly in foreign markets—a weak
ness that has led to such things
as the pushing up of the price of
gold on the London Exchange.
They said the actual effect of
decreeing that the dollar will be
worth only 90 kopecks—there are
100 kopecks in the ruble—instead
of four rubles, was negligible
unless the ruble is made into
convertible currency which can
be freely changed into other
money in international commerce.
At present the ruble has an ar
bitrarily set value which bears
little relation to world or dom
estic prices.
No mention was made in the
announcement of the present spe
cial tourist rate of 10 rubles to
$1.
Has No International
Monetary Significance
WASHINGTON, UP)—The U. S.
Treasury said Russia’s move to
increase the gold content of the
ruble “appears to have no inter
national monetary significance in
the free world.”
In response to inquiries, the de
partment issued a statement
which said the Soviet move “can
have little or no international im
portance in the trade of Russia
with the free world which is con
ducted in the currencies of other
countries” — the dollar and the
pound sterling.
Noting that the ruble is neither
convertible into other currencies
nor traded internationally, the
Treasury said "its gold content
may be important only in the in
ternal operations and adminis
tration of the Soviet system and
possibly in some of the trade ar
rangements with the Soviet satel
lite countries.”
Treasury officials said they
saw nothing in the move to in
dicate that Russia plans to make
the ruble convertible. They also
said they would hestitate to char
acterize the Soviet action as a '
devaluation of the ruble.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL MEET I
IN ANCHORAGE THURSDAY
ANCHORAGE, OPi—A two-day
public hearing to receive recom
mendations for legislation will be i
opened here Thursday by the Al
aska Legislative Council, a group
of 10 lawmakers.
Recommendations received dur
ing the two-day meeting will be
referred to the full legislature
when it meets in Juneau next
Jan. 23.
Pioneer Women Meet Friday
Pioneer Women will hold their 1
monthly meeting Friday evening
at the Pioneer Igloo at 8 o’clock.
A good time is planned for all.
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