from Press TV
Last week, Iran and Russia announced to have finalized an agreement to trade in their local currencies instead of the US dollar. The agreement signed during a meeting between the governors of the two countries' central banks in Russia enables banks and economic actors to use infrastructures including non-SWIFT interbank systems to deal in local currencies.
Both Iran and Russia are subject to US sanctions, which have motivated the emerging allies to craft their own path in the global economy and break away from traditional monetary systems as countries around the world shift away from the greenback.
In recent years, Russia and Iran have stepped up oil sales in alternative currencies, and found buyers in China, India and elsewhere that are happy to buy these exports often at lower prices because paying in a domestic currency rather than dollars lowers transaction costs.
Last October, Royal Bank of Canada reported that 25% of Russia's trade with countries other than China was settled with the Chinese yuan.
The US dollar's dominant role in the international monetary system has enabled the country to act as the world’s watchdog and use threats of exclusion from the dollar-based financial system as a political leverage against the nations which it does not see eye to eye.
Seeing a risk that Washington could act similarly against them in the future, other governments have also moved to reduce their dependence on dollar payments..read more here
