Russian Stocks Hit Three-Month High on Peace Hopes

Investor sentiment rose on the summit, which is due to take place in Alaska on August 15, though market movements remain volatile in early trade.

Moscow Exchange Sees Strong Gains
The Moscow Exchange index of the country's 40 biggest businesses has leaped by 8.3 per cent since Thursday, adding some 465 billion rubles (€5.1 billion) in market value. It rose to that level on Friday, closing at 2,996.4 points for the first time since early April.

Sanctions-Hit Companies Lead the Rise
The most affected by the Western sanctions, securities are in the lead of the market — this group went up. VSMPO-AVISMA, the world's top titanium producer, gained 10.0%, steelmaker Severstal was up 4.4% and national carrier Aeroflot added 3.3%. Gazprom's stock surged 16% during the week and also contributed to keeping the momentum. Investor sentiment buoyed at the Alaska summit.

The key driver of the rally, market analysts say, is that investors are hopeful following what they have been labelling "Taylor-Meeting" (or Trump-Putin Meeting) with de-escalation in Ukraine and possible easing of sanctions. A number of traders have been seen as a possible turnaround in the Russia-U. S. relations.

Fragile Confidence
While the gains are encouraging, experts warn that the current optimism is fragile. Failure to secure a more substantive breakthrough in Alaska could see any recent buying upended—especially for stocks that have gone up largely on hopes.

Potential for a Market Pullback
The EU or Ukraine could still criticize the polls and rattle investors, analysts said, and spark an exodus from risk assets. The market has ridden a rebound in recent days with speculation swirling that the showdown could lead to lower tariffs and investment barriers between the world's top two economies, though an agreement is by no means assured, given the last round crashed spectacularly.

European Markets Also Benefit
Peace hopes have extended beyond Russia. Eurozone stocks have similarly jumped, with the pan-European STOXX 600 index climbing back to its highest level since July 31 on Monday in a sign of more widespread demand for stability in the region.