MOSCOW: Russian stocks fell to more than three-week lows in early trade on Tuesday after Wall Street suffered its biggest decline since 2011.
At 0815 GMT, the dollar-denominated RTS index was down 2.26 percent to 1,232.48 points and the rouble-based MOEX Russian index, previously known as MICEX, was 1.58 percent lower at 2,240.32 points.
The trigger for the US sell-off was a sharp rise in US bond yields following data on Friday which showed US wages increasing at the fastest pace since 2009, raising the alarm about higher inflation and with it potentially higher interest rates.
The gloom is seen enveloping European shares, but emerging market assets survived the sell-off in a "moderate and orderly fashion", analysts at UBS said in a note.
"From their recent highs on 25 January, the emerging market equity benchmark fell less than the 3.8 percent drop in the S&P 500, while hard-currency and local bond indices fell less than US Treasury bonds did," they said.
But markets are unlikely to feel any relief from downside risks throughout the trading day on Tuesday, BCS analysts said.
"Oil prices are falling, and fears of a more aggressive than expected rate hike by the US Federal Reserve this year continue to sow panic on global exchanges," they said in a note.
Brent crude oil, a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was down 0.49 percent at $67.28.
The Russian rouble was stable against the dollar, up just 0.11 percent at 57.14 and was unchanged versus the euro at 70.95.
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