Experts recap situation on MICEX

There was little stock price fluctuation on the Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange (MICEX) yesterday. According to experts, the MICEX index was hovering slightly above the closing value of September 8. Sellers became more active at the end of the session. As a result, the MICEX index dropped by 0.52 percent to 490.25 points. The volume of trade amounted to about RUR8.5bn ($280m). Most blue chips lost in value. RAO UES slid 2.44 percent, Mosenergo edged down 0.15 percent, Surgutneftegas slipped 0.85 percent and Rostelecom eased back 0.5 percent. Among few movers on the plus side were LUKoil with a 0.36-percent gain, YUKOS advancing 0.66 percent and Sberbank edging up 0.48 percent.

A decline in most world stock indices exerted a negative influence on the Russian stock market. European indices dropped by 0.7 to 1.5 percent, and US indices by 0.7 to 1.2 percent shortly after the bell. Additionally, world oil prices still tend to move lower ahead of the resumption of oil supplies from Iraq. Brent oil edged down 0.2 percent to $27.12 per barrel. The domestic news background was neutral except for YUKOS reporting preliminary results of its stock repurchase.