The Russian government is promising to introduce new measures to support the rouble and stabilise the economy, after the shock waves from its financial crisis knocked hundreds of billions of pounds off the value of world stock markets yesterday.
The prime minister, Mr Viktor Chernomyrdin, has said that the new moves are backed by the International Monetary Fund, but it remains to be seen whether they will calm international stock markets, which will open nervously after a sharp fall on Wall Street last night.
"The situation is difficult but absolutely manageable," Interfax, the Russian news agency, quoted Mr Chernomyrdin as telling a group of Russian journalists. "A series of important decisions have been taken after consulting Russia's best brains."
"The main goal is to stop the rouble fall, not allow the economy to collapse and reduce the losses of each Russian from these financial turmoils," he added.
Full details of the new measures were not outlined, but reports from Moscow suggested they would include new controls on the currency market.
The world buzzed with rumours that the Yeltsin era had already come to an end with a letter of resignation from the president, but the Russian leader's press spokesman, Mr Sergei Yastrzhembsky, said Mr Yeltsin would be in the Kremlin today. Amid a torrent of speculation that Mr Yeltsin is gravely ill or on the brink of quitting, one Russian newspaper carried a picture of the president looking out of a car window with the banner headline: "He's Alive".
The Kremlin press service yesterday fiercely denied reports of Mr Yeltsin's resignation and lambasted foreign media for "spreading untrue information".
The Communist-dominated parliament demanded that President Yeltsin surrender much of his constitutional authority to the legislature.
The parliament, whose approval is required to confirm Mr Chernomyrdin as prime minister, is also calling for a softening of monetary policy and tough controls on financial markets. Mr Chernomyrdin, canvassing support, met Communist leaders and the former general, Mr Alexander Lebed. The crisis is continuing to ing effect on stock markets around the world, with growing fears in the markets that a full-scale economic collapse there will trigger further sharp falls.
The New York stock market suffered its biggest points fall since Black Monday 1987 yesterday as share prices fell by over 4 per cent with investors moving into the perceived security of US treasury bonds. European markets also fell sharply and in Dublin Irish share prices fell by more than 4 per cent, knocking almost £2 billion off their value.
The Dow Jones index of US shares closed down 357.36 points at 8165, a fall of 4.19 per cent, while the broader-based Nasdaq US share index dropped by 4.6 per cent. There were widespread predictions late yesterday that further falls are in prospect and markets could face another turbulent trading session today.
In Moscow, the run on share prices continued with a vengeance, with the stock market down by 84 per cent and now worth less than the valuation of the supermarket chain Sainsbury's on the London Stock Exchange.
US President, Mr Bill Clinton and the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, discussed the Russian crisis and the Northern Ireland peace process in a 20 minute telephone conversation last night.