Russian stocks to deepen decrease as anti-Iran sanctions withdrawn

MOSCOW, Jan 18 (PRIME) -- Russian stocks may continue decreasing at Monday opening on the news that the sanctions upon Iran have been removed, and investors believe that the country can overflood the global market with cheap oil, analysts said.

“From the point of view of technical analysis, the possibility of the RTS decrease continuation is still there. The oil market situation is still unfavorable, the pressure on prices has become stronger after announcement of removal of international sanctions upon Iran,” Olma senior analyst Anton Startsev said.

The MICEX can open at about 1,605, Oleg Shagov, head of investment company Solid’s research department, said. The stocks will consolidate after the last week’s sell-off, he said.

Brent contracts fell 1.73% to U.S. $28.44 per barrel at 9:27 a.m. Moscow time on Monday.

The ruble is now too strong, bearing in mind the current oil price plummeting, which is why the MICEX will be falling as well as the RTS, Ilya Frolov, a senior analyst at Promsvyazbank, said.

On January 15, the U.S., European and Asian stocks closed in the red zone, which will add pessimism on the Russian market on Monday, Bank Obrazovanie’s senior analyst Vitaly Manzhos said.

Expectations that the government will raise the tax burden on oil companies are also a negative factor for the Russian market, analyst of Alor Broker Alexei Antonov said.

The U.S. markets will be closed for a holiday on Monday, and no important statistics will be published, which is why the foreign background will be calm, Shagov said.

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