Russia’s Markets Declines at Accelerated Speed
Despite the absence of the better part of western investors, the sales of Russia’s stocks on the market continued with another momentum. “The trend has been established, and we need neither external nor internal stimuli to continue,” said AntantaPioglobal trader Dmitry Peregudov.
Nothing has fundamentally changed on the market, the attitude to Russia’s stocks remains negative, said Sergei Karykhalin, chief of the analytical department at Kapital Asset Management Company. “Most of investors think the prices will be even lower, so no one wants to buy and the adjustment happens on low turnover,” the expert pointed out. The sales of the RTS classic market shed to $22 million yesterday, which was 1.5 fold below the Friday turnover, MICEX sank to 36.8 billion ruble vs. 39.2 billion ruble on Friday.
Pressurized by Russia’s investors and the statements of Russia’s authorities about the WTO membership and relations with NATO, the RTS benchmark lost 3.17 percent to 1,647.67, and MICEX sank nearly 4 percent to close at 1,320.58.
The losses of blue chips, especially in the banking sector, were the heftiest. VTB slumped 7.9 percent to 6.79 kopecks, which is half as much as in time of the people’s IPO (13.6 kopecks). Sberbank shed 5 percent. The global decline in oil prices fueled sales in the oil sector. As a result, LUKOIL lost 4.9 percent, Rosneft lowered 4.5 percent and Gazprom dropped 3.8 percent.
But the trend failed to extend to Norilsk Nickel that opened 7 percent up on the news of the launch of the program for the stock buyout. The price corresponds to the weighted average price of the previous half-year and equals 6,167 ruble ($253) per a stock. The announced price provides for the 24-percent premium to the market quote of August 22 close. The holders may apply for selling from September 29 to October 28. But even Norilsk Nickel adjusted to the general trend in the afternoon to gain no more than 1.65 percent on MICEX that day.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Aug. 26, 2008
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