









Engdahl focuses attention on the fact that the sale of oil denominated in US dollars is essential for the support of the American currency's leading role. Indeed, the US dollar's status as world's major reserve currency is one of two pillars of Washington's hegemony since the end of the Second World War (the other one is the US military supremacy), the historian emphasizes.


"Today, prices for Russian oil exports are set according to the Brent price in as traded London and New York. With the launch of Russia's benchmark trading, that is due to change, likely very dramatically. The new contract for Russian crude in rubles, not dollars, will trade on the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange (SPIMEX)."

And, as Bloomberg reports, it appears that day is getting close...








Not everyone is excited about the prospect of a Russia-controlled oil benchmark, as one can well imagine...

“The reality is that the Kremlin is always likely to be heavily involved in the Russian oil industry,” said Richard Mallinson, an analyst at Energy Aspects Ltd. “That creates the concern that the proposals might be structured to try to achieve higher prices, which is not consistent with efficient price discovery.”



“Some market participants might be wary of embracing the new futures contracts as a benchmark due to concerns about the Russian government’s high degree of involvement in the oil sector,” said Eugene Lindell an analyst at Vienna-based JBC. “It remains questionable as to what extent Spimex can provide a better overall trading framework.”