Oil price, ruble rise push Russian stocks higher

MOSCOW, Jan 22 (PRIME) -- Russian stocks increased on Friday as the oil price rebounded pushing the ruble higher, while healthy foreign trading floors also supported the shares, analysts said.

The MICEX rose 2.43% to 1,717.98 and the RTS increased 9.38% to 691.40.

“The revival of risk appetite on global trading floors by the end of the trading week caused a rise of Russian stock indices. The oil price, which continued yesterday’s upward movement, rose to above $31 per barrel and gave reason for optimism,” Igor Kovalyov, an analyst at brokerage company InstaForex, said.

Statements made by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi concerning quantitative easing plans, cues that Japan’s central bank may also expand this policy, and Chinese authorities’ new measures of support caused the surge of the global stock market, Andrei Kochetkov, an analyst at Otkritie Broker, said.

The rise of the dollar-denominated RTS was technically sped up by the ruble strengthening.

Oil and gas stocks surged due to the Brent price rebound, Kochetkov said. Gas giant Gazprom rose 3.64% to 132.4 rubles, oil major Lukoil grew 5.79% to 2,340.9 rubles and oil company Tatneft rose 8.59% to 319.90 rubles.

Top Russian lender Sberbank jumped 6.40% to 91.5 rubles after it announced plans to settle metals producer Mechel’s debt, and amid the ruble rise. Mechel grew 11.47% to 62.39 rubles.

Some metals exporters’ stocks became less attractive on the back of the ruble strengthening, Kochetkov said. Metals mining company Polymetal fell 2.40% to 600 rubles, steel maker Severstal decreased 3% to 642 rubles and nickel producer Norilsk Nickel went down 0.33% to 9,100 rubles.

Below are the MICEX’ five most active stocks on Friday:

Company	Change, %	Last price, rbl	Trading volume, bln rbl
Sberbank	+6.40	91.50	18.630
Gazprom	+3.64	132.40	7.532
Lukoil	+5.79	2340.90	4.693
Norilsk Nickel	-0.33	9100.00	4.668
VTB	+3.13	0.0696	2.986

(83.5913 rubles – U.S. $1)

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