Putin, Oil, Ruble All Headed for 63 May Be No Russian Joke

Heard the one about Vladimir Putin, the oil price and the ruble’s value against the dollar? They will all hit 63 next year.

That’s the joke doing the rounds of the Kremlin as the Russian government digs in to weather international sanctions over the conflict in Ukraine. According to at least five people close to Putin, pressure from the U.S. and Europe is galvanizing Russians to withstand a siege on their economy.