Russian rouble firms, stocks up ahead of US election

MOSCOW: Russia's rouble firmed on Tuesday and stocks rose before U.S. mid-term election that could bring more clarity about the prospect of new sanctions against Moscow.

After a three-day long weekend in Russia, the rouble gained 0.3 percent to 66.00 against the dollar as of 0751 GMT .

Derivatives market positioning suggests that "there is no deep consensus among market participants that the U.S. midterm elections carry exclusively downside risks for the rouble," analysts at VTB Capital said in a note.

"For now, we will trade at around 66 (rouble per dollar) guessing who will be elected in the States," said a dealer at a major Russian bank in Moscow.

Analysts expect pressure on stocks if Democrats gain control of the U.S. House of Representatives and a sharper downward reaction if they sweep the House and Senate.

Versus the euro, the rouble gained 0.2 percent to 75.31 .

Russia's finance ministry is set to announce its plan to replenish state reserves in November. The plan, however, will have no immediate impact on the rouble as the FX purchases for state coffers have been put on hold until the end of the year.

Russian stock indexes were up. The dollar-denominated RTS index rose 0.9 percent to 1,145.2 points, while the rouble-based MOEX Russian index was 0.8 percent higher at 2,397.8 points.