Ruble begins to recover from sharp drop

The Russian ruble has added 0.3 per cent versus the US dollar in forex trading markets today (July 18th), having plummeted by more than two per cent in the previous session.

Demand for the currency was hampered after the US and European Union announced stringent sanctions against some of the country's largest businesses, as a result of the ongoing tensions between Russian and Ukraine.

Just hours later, a Malaysian Airlines passenger jet was reportedly shot down by a surface-to-air missile and crashed in eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board. 

Russian president Vladimir Putin said the government in Kiev must take responsibility for the incident as a result of the conflict in the region.

Ukraine's state security service has claimed it intercepted phone conversations among pro-Russian militants discussing a missile strike on the jet. 

While analysts have suggested the ruble may decline further depending on developments in the tensions, the currency has gained early in the European session, trading at 35.07 per dollar.