Russian stocks rise backed by optimism on global floors

MOSCOW, Aug 26 (PRIME) -- Russian stocks managed to close higher on Wednesday as positive dynamics prevailed on Western floors, analysts said.

The MOEX Russia Index rose 0.76% to 3,051.97 and the RTS increased 0.48% to 1,273.24.

“The MOEX Russia Index and the RTS retreated from the session’s lows by the end of trading and tried to consolidate in positive territory thanks to growth of certain shares and moderate optimism abroad,” Veles Capital analyst Yelena Kozhukhova said.

The foreign background was mixed. Trading in the U.S. again started without single dynamics of three main indices, which were trading mixed within 1% by the end of the Russian session. Moderately positive moods prevailed on European floors.

The nearest futures for Brent and WTI oil switched to decline by the evening and were losing around 0.5% as trading in Russia closed.

Petropavlovsk Plc, which operates gold deposits in Russia, was among growth leaders, with shares adding 7.11% on no fundamental reasons. Bank Saint Petersburg closed 2.68% higher after reporting that its net profit rose 3.6% on the year to 3.6 billion rubles in January–June, as calculated under Intentional Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

Metals and mining company Mechel was among outsiders, with preferred shares falling 1.77%.

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

Company	Change, %	Last price, rbl	Trading volume, bln rbl
Yandex	-0.89	5010.00	17.673
Sberbank	-0.25	227.50	16.533
Norilsk Nickel	+0.81	19990.00	5.209
Gazprom	+0.88	187.88	4.450
Lukoil	+1.16	5280.50	4.064

(74.5126 rubles – U.S. $1)

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