On Saturday, rating agency S&P cut its rating on Russia to "Selective Default" after the Russian government said last week that it had repaid about $650 million in dollar-denominated debt in rubles (the payment was contractually due in dollars but Russia claims that sanctions make payment impossible). The downgrade to what is effectively a determination of default was S&P's final assessment before it pulled coverage (ratings firms are abandoning Russia because of a European Union ban; Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings have also withdrawn ahead of an April 15 deadline). On April 4, Russia had been due to ... (full story)