MOEX Russia Index Closes Flat as Energy Stocks Drag Broader Market Lower

The MOEX Russia Index closed unchanged at the end of Sunday's trading session, a figure that belied broader market weakness as more stocks fell than rose, led by a sharp downturn in the country's major energy companies.

Market Internals Show Weakness

While the benchmark index registered a 0.00% change, market breadth on the Moscow Stock Exchange was negative. Data showed that falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones by a margin of 124 to 111, with 16 issues ending the day unchanged.

Reflecting the flat index performance, the Russian Volatility Index (RVI), which measures the implied volatility of MOEX options, was also unchanged at 47.85.

Energy Sector Declines, Tech Gains

The session's worst performers were concentrated in the oil and gas sector. Shares of major producers saw notable declines:

Ad

• Rosneft (MCX:ROSN) fell 3.04% to close at 341.60.
• TATNEFT (MCX:TATN) declined 2.48% to 503.30.
• LUKOIL (MCX:LKOH) was down 2.14%, ending at 4,616.00.

In contrast, the top performers included e-commerce firm OZON (MCX:OZON), which rose 2.85%, and gold producer Polyus (MCX:PLZL), which added 1.61%. Utility company Unipro (MCX:UPRO) also gained 1.55%.

Commodities and Currencies Diverge

The weakness in Russian energy stocks coincided with a drop in global oil prices. The October Brent oil contract fell 3.88% to trade at $91.68 a barrel, while Crude oil for September delivery lost 2.14% to hit $85.15 a barrel.

Elsewhere in commodities, Gold Futures for August delivery were up 0.51% to $4,070.80 a troy ounce. In currency markets, the Russian ruble strengthened against major currencies, with the USD/RUB pair falling 0.83% and the EUR/RUB pair down 0.91%.