Russian stocks to open flat on neutral environment

MOSCOW, Jan 19 (PRIME) -- Russian stocks are likely to open flat on Thursday as the ultimate influence of key external factors that have a significant impact on the market is close to neutral at the beginning of the day, analysts said.

“We expect the Russian stock market to open in the range of 2,170–2,175 of the MICEX index and suppose that the stock indicator may show a technical rebound during the day after six consecutive days of losses if the external background improves,” Oleg Shagov, head of investment company Solid’s research department, said.

The Brent oil price rose 0.87% to U.S. $54.39 per barrel as of 9.09 a.m. Moscow time, according to the ICE exchange.

The U.S. stock index futures are changing insignificantly early in the day, major Asian floors show no common dynamics and the European trade session’s premarket data signal that Russian stocks may edge up in the morning, making for a neutral background for the Russian market, Shagov said.

But Alyona Afanasyeva, a senior analyst at Forex Club group of companies, said that the Brent oil price – the key factor for the Russian market, are still under pressure from higher demand for the U.S. dollar, which always results in a fall of oil prices, and growing concerns that U.S. shale oil producers can restore production fast and offset the OPEC actions to cut the world oil output.

Timur Nigmatullin, an analyst at investment company Finam, also said that the MICEX index will start the trade in a neutral way thanks to the external background and the unwillingness of investors to take risks prior to inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.

Shagov also said that investors will track European Central Bank’s monetary policy decisions and the release of the U.S. oil production and reserves statistics.

Nigmatullin added that releases of financial results for 2016 of uncut diamond mining giant ALROSA, U.K.-based mining giant Evraz, which operates mainly in Russia, and operating results of retailer Dixy Group for the previous year will be in investors’ focus.

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