FX.co ★ Russian Stocks Drop on Trump Threat

In late July, the MOEX Russia Index declined to 2,750 following comments by U.S. President Trump, who suggested an earlier deadline for Russia to secure a ceasefire with Ukraine. Though he withheld specific details, Trump hinted at imposing tariffs on nations re-exporting Russian goods. This statement increased the pressure on energy companies such as Lukoil, Rosneft, and Gazprom, which faced decreased demand from China and were impacted by stricter European sanctions on tankers, affecting their sales. Meanwhile, the MOEX continued to show a lack of correlation with global equity market movements and remained largely unresponsive to macroeconomic developments. The series of Western sanctions on Russia have isolated its financial sector from global economic trends. Despite this, Moscow's banking sector has been among the top performers, with Sberbank's stock nearing its pre-Ukraine war levels. This resilience was bolstered by indications from the central bank that it may support commercial banks if the situation with non-performing loans worsens.