MOSCOW (AFP) — Trading halted on Russia's main stock markets when dealing was suspended for a second day on Wednesday as shares dived and officials pledged 44 billion dollars to fight collapsing investor confidence.
Analysts said the closure was a bid by officials to buy time to let the money filter through to the market and to reassure rattled investors.
Trading was halted on both the RTS and the Micex on the orders of a Federal Service for the Financial Markets (FSFM) after the RTS fell 6.39 percent in the first two hours, exchange officials said.
The ruble-denominated Micex suspended trading after a fall of 3.09 percent, a spokeswoman said.
The RTS has now lost 57 percent since hitting an all-time high in May, a slump analysts put down to a combination of falling energy prices, global market turmoil and political issues.
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