Russia's central bank has made an aggressive move to combat the plunge in the country's currency by raising its core interest rate to 17%.
The surprise action, announced overnight, was a response to the rouble's value sinking by almost 50% over the course of the year - hit by Western sanctions imposed over the conflict in Ukraine and plunging worldwide oil prices.
The currency strengthened - by more than 9% against the dollar at one stage - in the wake of the surprise intervention.
It was also intended to settle nerves back home as fears grow that the extent of Russia's economic problems - largely unreported by state media - could at some stage potentially spark panic among consumers as price rises become unmanageable.
By raising interest rates, the bank hopes too that investors will find it more financially appealing to keep their money in Russia.
The rate was raised to 17% from 10.5% - highlighting the extent of the monetary policy action.
Russia's economy relies heavily on revenue from oil, which is priced in dollars.
Falls of more than 50% in world oil prices are tipped to plunge the country into recession next year.
The central bank has raised the rate from 5.5% earlier this year to 10.5% just last Thursday.
The Bank of Russia said then that it expected inflation to run at 10% this year but climb further in the first quarter of 2015.
But the ruble plunged further against the dollar on Monday, dropping from 55 rubles last week to about 65 rubles to the dollar.
A falling currency increases the cost of imports, thereby stoking inflationary pressures.
At the same time, plummeting oil prices give the government less money to combat a downturn and can force it to borrow more.
The sanctions imposed by the West have magnified Russia's economic turmoil.
In September, the US and the European Union announced a new round of sanctions over Moscow's involvement in Ukraine, which included blocking Western financial markets to key Russian companies and limiting imports of some technologies.
The potential for a prolonged downturn caused investors to pull their money from the country, causing the ruble to further lose value.
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