Credit insurance shows Russia faces 99% chance of debt default within a year

GlaxoSmithKline said its consumer arm has stopped shipments of supplements and vitamins to Russia as a result of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine

Russia slipped closer to a technical default after foreign banks declined to process about $650m of dollar payments on its bonds, forcing it to offer rubles instead.

The Russian rouble has wiped out the steep losses it incurred in the weeks after President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine, but the cost of insuring Russia’s government debt surged to signal a record 99% chance of default within the year. 

The currency advanced past 81.16 per dollar, the level it closed at on February 23 — the day before President Putin launched his attack. It’s a recovery that comes at an ironic moment, as sweeping sanctions cripple Russia’s economy and send the government teetering on the edge of default.