The "rally" of the Russian ruble and the Moscow Exchange continues

While MOEX gained 1.91 percent at the opening and rose above 3,366 points, the dollar-based RTS index rose 1.91 percent and rose above 1,200 points for the first time since May 24, 2024.

While the Russian ruble gained 0.95 percent against the dollar, the dollar/ruble parity fell below the level of 87.8.

US President Donald Trump said yesterday that some agreements could be made with Russia regarding the economy, especially rare earths.

Following Trump's statements, Russian President Vladimir Putin also noted that they were open to cooperation with US companies.

Delegations from the US and Russia will meet in Saudi Arabia on February 18, while the parties are expected to meet for consultations this week.

Due to Trump's statement on Russian rare earths, the shares of Rusal, one of the country's leading mining companies, started the day with a 4 percent increase, MMK with a 2.65 percent increase, and NLMK with a 1.62 percent increase.

Russia's second largest bank VTB's net profit hits record

In a written statement from VTB, Russia's second largest bank, it was stated that the bank's net profit increased by 215.6 percent on an annual basis in the last quarter of last year, reaching 176.4 billion rubles.

The statement noted that the bank's assets increased by 22.8 percent last year compared to 2023, exceeding 36 trillion rubles, and that the bank's net profit increased by 27.6 percent in the period in question, reaching a record level of 551.4 billion rubles (approximately $6.3 billion).

VTB Vice President Dmitry Pyanov told reporters in Moscow that despite last year’s record profit, the bank does not plan to pay dividends this year.

"There are an unprecedented number of negative factors that could arise simultaneously that could affect our ability to increase capital adequacy," Pyanov said, noting that the Central Bank of Russia has kept its policy rate at 21 percent.

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