Russian stocks rise on positive global environ, higher oil prices

MOSCOW, Mar 12 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market edged up on Tuesday thanks to rising crude prices and a generally positive external environment, analysts said.

The MOEX Russia Index grew 0.09% to 2,468.25 and the RTS rose 0.56% to 1,183.34.

“Global risky assets (demonstrated) a confident growth. The optimism was supported by expectations that the world’s key central banks can loosen monetary policies on the back of weak results of the largest economies,” BCS Broker expert Dmitry Babin said.

The stock exchanges were also backed by adjustments to the Brexit agreement between the U.K. and the E.U. which raise the deal’s chances for passing through the British Parliament, he added.

Crude oil prices consolidated higher during the day, giving additional support to the domestic benchmarks.

Otkritie Broker analyst Andrei Kochetkov said that oil major Rosneft lost 0.56% to 397.5 rubles after U.S. State Secretary Michael Pompeo had accused the company of buying crude from Venezuela, which violates U.S. sanctions.

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

Company	Change, %	Last price, rbl	Trading volume, bln rbl
Sberbank	-0.07	205.1	8.692
Norilsk Nickel	+1.99	14380	3.767
Lukoil	+0.27	5576	3.121
Gazprom	+0.03	151.64	2.355
Rosneft	-0.56	397.5	1.304

(66.0763 rubles – U.S. $1)

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