Russian stocks to grow on good Chinese statistics, stable oil

MOSCOW, Jan 13 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market is to firm on Wednesday, as oversold stocks will claw back its losses on the back of solid Chinese December trade surplus and oil price stabilization, analysts said.

“A certain increase is possible today in the start of trade because the external situation has eased,” Olma senior analyst Anton Startsev said. He said that the Chinese trade surplus figures were better than expected, which stabilized the commodity market.

Brent has managed to hold up above the U.S. $30 psychological threshold, which will convince investors to buy, Georgy Vashchenko, director for operations on the Russian stock market at investment company Freedom Finance, said. Brent rose 0.62% to U.S. $31.05 per barrel at 9.02 a.m., Moscow time.

The U.S. stock market futures are gaining, another factor supporting the Russian market, UFS IC analyst Alexei Kozlov said. Key Asian indices are growing as well, which is also good, Oleg Shagov, a head of investment company Solid’s analytical department, said.

The MICEX is expected to open at 1,720, Vashchenko said. The RTS will likely consolidate after recent sell-offs, Startsev said.

Oil and gas companies, and the financial sector can outperform the market on Wednesday.

There is a continuing growth trend in Sberbank, the Moscow Exchange and VTB, analyst of Alor Broker Alexei Antonov said.

In the evening, market participants will focus on the U.S. oil products and reserves figures, and surprises are not ruled out, Bogdan Zvarich, an analyst at investment holding Finam, said.

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