Russian stocks may fall on low oil prices, mixed background

MOSCOW, Aug 17 (PRIME) -- Russian stocks may decrease or open flat on Wednesday amid falling oil prices and mixed foreign background, analysts said.

“In my opinion, yesterday’s correction at the MICEX index may continue in the first half of the day today,” Finam analyst Timur Nigmatullin said. “The domestic indicator of the “wide market” will most likely edge down by up to 0.5%. The main pressure will come from oil prices falling on weak statistics and strong dollar,” the analyst said.

The Brent oil price is decreasing by 0.9% to U.S. $48.83 per barrel prior to the Russian opening, the analyst said.

The U.S. stock index futures fell by 0.4–0.7%, futures for the U.S. stock indices are increasing, European indices closed in red zone, and the majority of Asian indices are growing.

The information background prior to the Russian trade opening worsened on the government’s decision to delay privatization of oil company Bashneft, which was previously scheduled for autumn, Vasily Koposov, head of financial market analysis at KIT Finance Broker, said.

“From the positions of technical analysis, after testing the level of local maximum around 975 points at the RTS index some period of correction-consolidation is possible,” Olma senior analyst Anton Startsev said. “The foreign background looks rather neutral, but in case of deepening of downward correction on the U.S. stock market a change of investors’ mood on stock markets on the whole is possible,” the analyst said.

Investors will follow publication of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) reports for January–June by retailers O’Key and X5 Retail Group and fertilizer producer PhosAgro.

“We expect the market to open with an insignificant change at the MICEX index, around 1,975,” Vitaly Manzhos, a senior analyst at Bank Obrazovanie, said. The nearest support levels will be 1,965 and 1,950, while the resistance zones are 1,980 and 2,000, he said.

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