Sept 22 (Reuters) - The rouble steadied near 96 to the dollar on Thursday after the Russian government announced new rouble-linked export duties and temporarily banned some fuel exports in an effort to stabilise domestic prices.
At 0741 GMT, the rouble was 0.2% weaker against the dollar at 96.05 and had lost 0.4% to trade at 102.22 versus the euro. It had shed 0.3% against the yuan to 13.14.
Late on Thursday, Russia's government said a new set of export duties linked to the rouble-dollar exchange rate would be introduced on Oct. 1 and last until the end of next year.
The government said its decision would help protect the domestic market from "unjustified price increases" and to maintain a rational ratio between the export of goods and domestic consumption.
The move should lead to extra government revenues - as much as 600 billion roubles per year, according to seven Reuters sources - and could keep a lid on inflation and support the rouble, said Yevgeny Kogan, professor at Russia's Higher School of Economics.
However, he said the cons outweighed the pros, with no guarantee that the tax would ultimately slow inflation or the rouble's decline.
"The initiative looks as a minimum contradictory. As a maximum – explosive," Kogan wrote on Telegram. "Damage could be inflicted on entire industries."
The government said the duty would not apply if the rouble strengthened beyond 80 to the dollar. Otherwise it would range from 4% to 7%, reaching its maximum if the rouble was weaker than 95 per dollar.
Brent crude oil, a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was up 0.3% at $93.61 a barrel.
Russian stock indexes were higher.
The dollar-denominated RTS index was up 0.4% to 991.8 points. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index was 0.3% higher at 3,027.6 points. ($1 = 96.1350 roubles) (Reporting by Alexander Marrow Editing by Peter Graff)
