Russian market up 5% Monday, up 3.5% Tuesday. The RTS-Interfax stock index is up 38% YTD.
03/02 11:15 Russia shares make slow gain by close, seen steady
MOSCOW, March 2 (Reuters) - Russian shares maintained their slow but steady recent rise by the close on Tuesday, with hopes of fresh investor cash from a swap of domestic debt and optimism from the recent gains fuelling the market, dealers said.
The main over-the-counter RTS market saw relatively healthy volume of $8.0 million and the RTS1-Interfax index <.IRTS> ended with a 3.50 percent gain to 76.07. The broader Reuters Composite index <.RRC1> rose 3.58 percent to 220.77.
"The market hopes for a cash injection after the GKO restructure but that is not the only thing, people may have changed their attitude to Russia a little bit," said one trader.
He said some investors, scared by the country's crisis and market crash last year, were beginning to be worried they might miss the boat if the market rallies after the debt cash hits.
The government is on the verge of completing its restructure of the GKO and OFZ domestic debt, six months after the market was frozen and the rouble devalued.
Two leading Western banks have finally said they would accept the debt offer, breaking ranks with other foreign investors who have held off from taking up the swap offer. Around 75 percent of Russian investors have already accepted.
The RTS index is still at post-crisis August 1998 levels but has risen from 55 at the end of January.
"The market has definitely found new levels and it will consolidate this week around these levels," the trader said.
As usual, the day's activity was concentrated in a select few shares that are considered the market's blue chips.
These include LUKoil <LKOH.RTS>, which turned over $3.2 million for a closing gain of 4.28 percent to $5.85, and Unified Energy Systems <EESR.RTS>, which had trade of $2.6 million and saw a rise of 6.32 percent to $0.0505.
Surgutneftegaz <SNGS.RTS> was also active, adding 5.31 percent to $0.1090 on trade of $1.41 million.
|
