Russia follows int'l equity markets down
MOSCOW. April 25 (Interfax) - The Russian stock market corrected down on the back of the international equity markets and oil prices on Monday.
The MICEX stock index closed the day down 0.6% at 1955.47, its low for the day being 1944.94, and the RTS fell 0.4% to 927.66.
The biggest decliner among ruble-priced benchmark stocks on the Moscow Exchange was Magnit (-7.3%), following a weak Q1 financial report to IFRS. There were also losses for VTB (-0.6%), Gazprom (-0.6%), Lukoil (-1.3%), MMC Norilsk Nickel (-1.2%), Rostelecom (-1.4%), Sberbank (-1%, -1.5% prefs) and Surgutneftegas (-0.5%).
Russian Grids plummeted (-3.7%, -4.7% prefs) on a press report that it might not be able to pay dividends, despite turning profit last year, however its subsidiaries, notably Federal Grid Company (+2.1%) look like paying all their earnings to audited to Russian standards.
Transneft soared to a post-January high (+8.1% to 205,000 rubles a share) on an initiative to make the pipeline company pay half its earnings as dividends, and Polyus Gold hit a new all-time high (+3.7%, to 4,741 rubles a share).
There were also gains for Rosneft (+1.5%), Tatneft (+2.9%) and Gazprom Neft (+0.4%).
Leading decliners in the second tier were Mediaholding (-10.3%), Kuzbass Fuel Company (KTK) (-3.3%), Sollers (-3.3%), Acron (-3.2%), Aeroflot (-2.5%) and PhosAgro (-1.7%).
Advancers were led by Raspadskaya (+2.9%), Mostotrest (+1.8%), Severstal (+1.4%), Enel Russia (+1.3%) and Dixy Group (+1.2%).
Quadra (+4%) and RBC-TV (+3.9%) gained amid rumor that Mikhail Prokhorov's Onexim Group might sell those companies.
Combined trading volume on the main Moscow Exchange market was 36.733 billion rubles, of which 8.108 billion rubles in Sberbank ordinary shares and 5.543 billion rubles in Magnit shares.