Russian stocks seen consolidating ahead of Fed key rate decision

MOSCOW, Sep 18 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market will likely consolidate or correct down slightly on Wednesday as global investors’ concerns over Saudi Arabia’s oil supplies fade and they take a wait-and-see approach prior to the announcement of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s key rate decision, analysts said.

“The external background looks neutral for the Russian stock market. Oil prices are trying to recover from yesterday’s low, but the U.S. indices futures are in the red territory. We expect the market to open at the level of yesterday’s closing and we see sharp movements during the day as unlikely because most investors will take a wait-and-see approach,” Alor Broker analyst Alexei Antonov said.

In the second part of the session, Russian stocks may be pressured by investors’ wish to close positions ahead of the key rate decision announcement by the Federal Reserve, Antonov added.

Promsvyazbank senior analyst Mikhail Poddubsky said the MOEX Russia Index may consolidate within the 2,800–2,850 range due to oil prices correction, and will follow global stock exchanges’ reaction to the Federal Reserve’s decision.

Olma senior analyst Anton Startsev expects the RTS index to correct into a range below 1,400 with lower investor activity in the energy sector as concerns over oil supplies outages after drone attacks on Saudi Arabia soften.

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