Russian stocks may ease at opening amid uncertain environment

MOSCOW, Jul 5 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market may ease at opening and consolidate during the day on Thursday amid a moderately negative global background, analysts said.

“In the first minutes of trade the local market will likely price in the current worsening of external environment… We expect the MOEX Russia Index to edge down around 0.2% to 2,300 at opening… and come over to consolidation near the mark later in the day,” Vitaly Manzhos, senior risk manager at investment company Nord Capital, said.

Olma senior analyst Anton Startsev said that the RTS index is also likely to continue consolidation and that cues for higher investor activity may appear in the second half of the session when the U.S. releases employment and crude inventories statistics.

The U.S. benchmarks are demonstrating uncertain movement ahead of the release of the minutes from June’s meeting of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC).

Manzhos added that the global background is seen as moderately negative.

Russian traders will also follow the decision of flagship airline Aeroflot’s board of directors on dividends of its subsidiaries.

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