Russian stocks to rise as oil prices rise, hopes for Merkel visit

MOSCOW, Feb 6 (PRIME) -- The Russian stock market will increase on Friday following growing oil prices and investor expectations that a visit of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and France’s President Francois Hollande to Moscow will ease Ukrainian tensions, analysts said.

“Improvement of the situation on the oil market and optimistic expectations regarding negotiations on Ukraine will, most probably, support the market at the beginning of the trading session,” Olma’s senior analyst Anton Startsev said.

Brent grew 0.81% to U.S. $57.38 at 9.09 a.m., Moscow time.

Hollande and Merkel scheduled a visit to Kiev for Thursday evening and a visit to Moscow for Friday. “Investors’ activity may rise after the results of the visit of Germany’s and France’s leaders to Moscow are made public,” Startsev said.

Foreign background before the opening of the Russian trading session is neutral as the U.S. stock market futures kept flat and Asian indices fell, Promsvyazbank’s analyst Yevgeny Loktyukhov said in a research note.

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