Apple Temporarily Halts Online Sales in Russia Due to 'Extremely Sharp' Ruble Fluctuations

Apple has temporarily halted online sales in Russia due to fluctuations in the value of the ruble, reports Bloomberg. The online store will be down until Apple is able to revise its prices in the country.

"Our online store in Russia is currently unavailable while we review pricing," Alan Hely, a spokesman for the Cupertino, California-based company, said today in an e-mailed statement. "We apologize to customers for any inconvenience."

Similarly, an Apple spokesperson told Russian site Lenta.ru that the store was offline due to "extremely sharp" fluctuations of the Russian ruble.

As of right now, the Apple Online store for Russia is down, displaying Apple's typical "We'll be back" message that is offered when a store is taken offline. It is not clear how long it will take to make the pricing adjustments.

Due to the weak Russian ruble, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus in Russia were priced much lower than in other European countries. Ahead of the store closure, the 16GB iPhone 6 was priced at 39990 rubles, equivalent to €447 or $558. The 16GB iPhone 6 Plus was priced at 46990 rubles, or €550/$681. In many other European countries, the 16GB iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are priced closer to €700 ($876) and €800 ($999), respectively.

This is the second time in recent weeks that Apple has had to adjust pricing in Russia. Last month, Apple increased the price of the iPhone 6 by 25 percent in the country. The ruble fell as much as 19 percent today to exceed 80 per dollar before rebounding somewhat. The ruble is down roughly 50 percent against the dollar this year.