NEW YORK, July 23. /TASS/. The cost of a barrel of Russia's Urals oil has exceeded the price cap set at $60 in recent days, which indicates that Russia has won the battle for influence on the world oil markets, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing calculations of commodities-data firm Argus Media.

According to the newspaper, Russia "notched a victory in the fight for influence over global oil markets in recent days" as "the price for its flagship Urals grade of oil has breached the $60-a-barrel limit since the US and its allies introduced the novel sanctions policy last December." The newspaper points out that this indicates that Moscow has "succeeded, at least in part, in adjusting to the restrictions."

"Higher prices could bolster Russia’s oil-export revenues, which last month dropped to just over half their level from a year ago," the newspaper notes, "The cap, an embargo on Russian oil in Europe and a recent drop in exports have reduced Russia’s tax take from energy this year, hurting the budget."

However, pressure on Russia may be reducing as "the discount for Urals, compared with benchmark Brent, has narrowed to $20 a barrel." "The gap is still far wider than <…> [before the special military operation]," the newspaper added.