Russian stocks take a battering after Hague ruling

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse for Russian business after the sanctions imposed by The European Union last Friday, Russian business was dealt another fierce blow today with the groundbreaking  $50 billion ruling against The Russian federation for expropriating the oil giant – Yukos which was once the nation’s largest crude oil producer.

“Rarely has the hubris of a handful of criminals cost a country so much”

@robertamsterdam – International lawyer at Amsterdam & Partners LLP  / #YUKOS on Twitter

In today’s ruling by the Court of Arbitration in The Hague, the court ruled that Russia was liable for half the $100 billion which was being sought by the holding company GML Ltd, set up by former shareholders of Yukos.
Today’s announcement has left the Russian markets in turmoil. With a market already struggling with investor confidence at an all time low and concerns over more sanctions on their way as a penalty for Russia’s inability to control the actions of the pro-Russian rebels in The Ukraine.
The biggest casualty of today’s ruling has been Rosneft, Russia’s state owned, publicly traded oil company which bought up the majority of Yukos assets when they were forcibly auctioned off when Yukos was disassembled in 2004. Currently shares in Rosneft are trading at over 2 percent down today (14.00 GMT). Live stock updates from Bloomberg