Russian stocks grow on rising oil price, Gazprom jump

MOSCOW, May 14 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market increased on Tuesday due to the growth of oil prices and a record high surge of shares of Gazprom on the back of a dividend proposal, analysts said.

The MOEX Russia Index grew 2.13% to 2,562.33, and the RTS index increased 2.81% to 1,241.51.

“The announcement by (U.S. President Donald) Trump of introduction of U.S. $200 billion worth of duties on Chinese goods and a symmetrical response by the Chinese side disappointed the markets and resulted in higher volatility after the initial decline,” Deputy Director of the investment management department at Raiffeisen Capital Anton Kravchenko said.

“At the same time, the Russian market was supported by oil which is now traded at $70 per barrel.”

Otkritie Broker analyst Andrei Kochetkov said, “Nevertheless, the external events were not the primary focus of the market on Tuesday. Sberbank reported a 13.5% growth of the net profit under Russian Accounting Standards (RAS) in January–April as compared with 11.4% in January–March. Market hopes that this indicator can grow faster have returned.”

Gazprom’s shares hit their seven-year record on the news that executives have suggested the board of directors raise 2018 dividends to 16 rubles per share, analysts said.

Kochetkov said that Polyus posted solid figures in the report, with the net profit under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) more than doubling to 34.78 billion rubles in January–March, and grew 0.34%. But RUSAL’s net profit almost halved in January–March under IFRS and revenue fell dramatically, the shares decreased 3.26%.

Inter RAO grew 2.6% on an increase of its weight in the MSCI Russia index, he said.

Tatneft rose 2.24% after saying that it is not to blame for contamination of Russian oil in April, Kochetkov said.

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

Company	Change, %	Last price, rbl	Trading volume, bln rbl
Gazprom	+16.36%	189.67	32.966
Sberbank	+1.63%	227.88	17.480
Lukoil	-3.02%	5188.5	11.556
Tatneft	+2.24%	706.4	3.183
Norilsk Nickel	-0.11%	13954	1.783

(65.4703 rubles – U.S. $1)

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