Russian stocks grow on oil rise, hope for better relations with US

MOSCOW, Mar 21 (PRIME) -- The Russian stocks market rose on Wednesday supported by stronger oil, local corporate events and a blink of hope for better relations between Russia and the West, analysts said.

The MOEX Russia Index grew 0.79% to 2,309.36 and the RTS rose 1.12% to 1,270.08.

“The MOEX Russia Index and the RTS remained in the positive territory mainly due to (Russia’s top bank) Sberbank’s stocks and a surge in oil prices… Oil futures’ growth accelerated in the evening,” Veles Broker analyst Yelena Kozhukhova said.

The Brent oil price has broken to above U.S. $69 per barrel, the highest level since the beginning of February, on a positive crude inventories report by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Sberbank’s common shares surged 4.56% to 268.88 rubles and preferred shares jumped 7.61% to 222 rubles on the back of CEO German Gref’s promises of “very serious dividends” for 2017.

Veles Capital analyst Alexei Adonin said that the market was also supported by investor optimism about a recent telephone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump to discuss economic and energy cooperation.

Oil company Lukoil added 0.36% to 3,874 rubles after the company said its International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) net profit doubled to 418.8 billion rubles in 2017.

Fertilizer producer PhosAgro was among the biggest losers, it sagged 1.71% to 2,300 rubles on a weak IFRS report for October–December and for 2017 marking a 63% and 58.3% slide in net profit, respectively.

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

Company	Change, %	Last price, rbl	Trading volume, bln rbl
Sberbank, common	+4.56%	268.88	18.523
Gazprom	-0.66%	141.51	4.440
Lukoil	+0.36%	3874	3.045
Sberbank, preferred	+7.61%	222	2.660
VTB Bank	+0.19%	0.054	1.652

(57.7033 rubles – U.S. $1)

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