Russian stocks to edge up in wait for key rate, dividend decisions

MOSCOW, May 26 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market may open with a slight increase on Thursday on anticipation of the central bank’s decision on further reduction of the key rate to weaken the ruble and the dividend decisions of some large local players, analysts said.

Purchases may continue to prevail on the Russian market in the morning, senior analyst at financial supermarket Banki.Ru Bogdan Zvarich said. The MOEX Russia index will try and go out of the range of 2,350–2,400 and may overcome a short-term downward trend.

“The external background before the start of trade in Russia can be called neutral. There are strong local factors for the Russian market. Possible reduction of the central bank’s key rate will increase interest to shares on the back of lower yield of bank deposits. We also expect a weaker ruble, which will raise attractiveness of the stocks of exporters,” Otkritie Broker analyst Andrei Kochetkov said.

The central bank is expected to cut the key rate by 200 basis points at an extraordinary meeting today and take further step to weaken the ruble, Kochetkov said.

“The state of the external background may can described as mixed or unclear. It creates conditions for the opening of the MOEX Russia Index with a moderate deviation,” Vitaly Manzhos, senior risk manager at investment company Algo Capital, said.

Vladimir Solovyov from Promsvyazbank also believes that the local market may continue to rise as the board of directors of Rosneft and Gazprom are to announce their dividend decisions.

The Asian stocks are decreasing within 5%, except the Chinese market that is rising about 0.6%. The U.S. stock futures are falling about 0.2%. The Brent futures is trading around U.S. $111.4 per barrel, a 0.3% rise.

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