The Russian currency rallied and stocks surged after
the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France reached a
deal on a cease-fire in Ukraine from midnight, Feb.15.
The ruble rose 0.6 percent to 64.8710 against the dollar
as of 12:26 p.m., erasing a drop of as much as 3.3 percent, says Bloomberg.
The RTS stock index surged 5.2 percent to 875.96.
Russian equities climbed after President Vladimir Putin
announced the cease-fire from midnight, Feb. 15, telling
reporters “we agreed on the main things.”
Market players are watching the negotiations for signs 10-month the conflict will ease after U.S. and European Union sanctions and falling oil prices drove Russia’s economy to the brink of recession.
“This is good news which is positive for Russian assets,” Vitaly Isakov, a money manager at Otkritie Asset Management in Moscow, said by e-mail. “The key thing is that terms of the agreement are actually complied with. If military activities resume, markets will react in a negative way.”
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, while the accord gives “great hope,” there is still a
“big effort to make” on Ukraine talks.
In 2015 the threat of further U.S. and EU santions against Russia has weakened the ruble 6.1 percent.
