Russian stocks show slight growth amid no drivers, higher gas, oil

MOSCOW, Aug 26 (PRIME) -- The Russian stocks traded near zero during the day and closed with a slight increase amid the absence of clear drivers and having received some support from local corporate news and a favorable situation on the energy markets, analysts said.

The MOEX Russia Index increased by 1.00% to 2,268.89, and the RTS index edged up by 0.03% to 1,183.12.

The Russian stock market was showing near-zero dynamics during the day, analyst at investment company Finam Zarina Saidova said. “Trade activity remained low because of vacation season and the absence of new drivers,” she said, adding that investors were waiting for the speech of the U.S. Federal Reserve System’s (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell that took place at 5 p.m. Moscow time.

Finam analyst Igor Dodonov said that clear growth drivers have failed to appear over the last days, but investors have not found good reasons for sales either.

The market was mainly supported by quite a favorable background on the energy markets, Dodonov said. The spot prices for gas in Europe renewed a 5-month high and exceeded U.S. $3,500 per 1,000 cubic meters and the Brent prices stabilized at a bit lower $100 per barrel.

“The trade participants also continued to follow local corporate news, and weren’t apparently disturbed by rather hawkish statements by Powell, which provoked a sharp sell off on the U.S. and European floors,” Dodonov said.

Aeroflot grew by 3.9% on the back of the company’s announcement of plans to sign contracts for 323 Russian planes, including 73 Sukhoi Superjet planes, 210 MC-21 planes, a new model with Russian engines, and 40 Tu-214 planes.

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

Company	Change, %	Last price, rbl	Trading volume, bln rbl
Sberbank	+1.73	130.4	4.251
Gazprom	+0.95	183.62	2.371
Segezha	-1.97	7.48	1.682
Lukoil	+1.48	4115	1.145
Novatek	+1.35	1156.2	1.100

(59.7699 rubles – U.S. $1)

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