Russian stocks edge down on vague external environment

MOSCOW, May 25 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market spent the day in the negative territory and closed lower on Thursday amid an uncertain foreign background and a lack of encouraging drivers, analysts said.

The MOEX Russia Index fell 0.19% to 2,649.98 and the RTS decreased 0.33% to 1,040.48.

“The Russian stock market spent the day slightly in the negative territory due to a lack of drivers for positive stabilization,” Veles Broker analyst Yelena Kozhukhova said.

She also said that the foreign background was uncertain. The dynamics of the U.S. and European stock exchanges were neutral, and the Brent oil price lost around 4% by the end of the Russian trading session.

Qiwi Group, comprising payment system operator Qiwi and Qiwi Bank, was among the best performers ahead of its Friday publication of IFRS financial results for January–June.

Oil company Transneft added 3.12% prior to its board of directors’ dividend decision, and oil company Lukoil grew by 0.25% as its shareholders approved the payment of dividends for 2022.

Below are the MOEX Russia Index’s five most active stocks on Thursday:

Company	Change, %	Last price, rbl	Trading volume, bln rbl
Sberbank	-0.53	244.76	15.907
Magnit	-4.19	4032	8.168
Yandex	+4.68	2323.8	7.058
VTB Bank	-1.97	0.02316	5.443
Gazprom	-1.3	160.84	5.340

(79.9669 rubles – U.S. $1)

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