Russian stocks fall on unfavorable environment, recession concerns

MOSCOW, Jul 12 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market decreased on Tuesday thanks to strengthening of the ruble and a fall in commodity prices on the global market due to the threat of global economic recession, analysts said.

The MOEX Russia Index dropped 1.32% to 2,133.77 and the RTS decreased 1.03% to 1,142.37.

“Negative sentiments again prevailed on the Russian stock market on Tuesday. The first reason was strengthening of the ruble against the U.S. dollar, which continued to rise for the fourth consecutive trading session. Also there was a fall in prices on the commodity markets due to concerns about the beginning of global recession,” Alexei Golovinov, chief analyst at PSB Bank, said.

All the segments of the Russian market decreased with raw materials exporters being the biggest losers, he added.

In the metals and mining sector, Petropavlovsk Plc, which operates gold deposits in Russia, was the worst performer. The company had initiated the procedure of insolvency and filed to the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for delisting from the London Stock Exchange, which resulted in an up to 77% slide of the stock on the Moscow Exchange during the day.

Senior analyst at financial supermarket Banki.Ru Bogdan Zvarich said that sales on the local market were supported by the Brent oil price falling by 6.2% to around U.S. $100 per barrel on concerns about possible new coronavirus-related restrictions in China and Europe.

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

Company	Change, %	Last price, rbl	Trading volume, bln rbl
Gazprom	+1.32	191.4	8.807
Sberbank	+1.74	129	7.276
Lukoil	-2.51	3752	1.893
Novatek	-2.75	942	1.831
Rosneft	-3	333.5	1.194

(61.3045 rubles – U.S. $1)

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