Russian stocks may rise slightly as oil prices consolidating

MOSCOW, Jun 8 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market may see marginal positive dynamics at Wednesday opening because of a consolidation of oil prices and low investor activity before a meeting of the national central bank, analysts said.

“The influence of the key external factors which significantly affect the behavior of the Russian financial market is close to neutral today in the start of the day under our estimates,” Oleg Shagov, head of investment company Solid’s analytical department, said.

Oil quotations remain at about U.S. $51.5 per barrel after the U.S. Energy Department raised the price forecast for 2016–2017 and the reserves in the U.S. are expected to continue decreasing. The positions of the U.S. dollar are also expected to weaken, Shagov said.

Asian markets are not showing single dynamics and the European premarket signals a possibility of a small downward gap at the opening, he said.

As a result, the MICEX is expected to open at 1,950–1,955, the analyst said.

The RTS may continue rising because on Tuesday it closed above the consolidation range, Anton Startsev, a senior analyst at investment company Olma, said.

Investor activity will remain subdued because market participants are waiting for meetings of the Russian central bank on Friday and of the U.S. Federal Reserve System on June 14–15, Startsev said.

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