Russian stocks seen flat or higher amid oil market optimism

MOSCOW, Mar 29 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market is unlikely to move at opening on Wednesday due to a neutral global environment, but may rise during the day, analysts said.

“We expect the Russian stock market to open in a 2,030-2,035 range today and expect it to fluctuate around the current level amid a mixed external background with the U.S. crude stocks stat data to become the major driver,” Oleg Shagov, head of investment company Solid’s research department, said.

The Brent oil price is trading above $51 per barrel on the back of a severe disruption in Libyan oil supplies. The U.S. benchmark futures are in the green, while the Asian stock exchanges look mixed, the expert said.

“Investor optimism has increased because the Brent oil price has stuck over the technical support line of $50. The importance of the level is growing, though the upbeat sentiment has a limit,” Andrei Vernikov, deputy CEO for investment analysis of Zerich Capital Management, said.

Finam analyst Bogdan Zvarich said that the Brent oil price is likely to try a jump to over $52 per barrel at around midday supported by Libya’s crude deliveries disruption and Iran’s willingness to prolong an OPEC+ oil output cut agreement, which is likely to propel the Russian stock market higher.

Traders will also follow 2016 IFRS financial results releases by container shipping company TransContainer, silver and gold producer Polymetal International and developer Etalon.

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