By Andrei Skvarsky.
Russia’s leading Micex stock exchange was suspended yesterday in a move reminiscent of trading halts that occurred frequently following the 2008 financial crash.
The bourse attributed the one-hour plus suspension to ”technical reasons.” It later reopened before closing down 3.7 percent as global equities tumbled.
However, many market makers in Moscow and London were less than convinced and suggested the move may have been made to close the exchange to give companies breathing space as they faced margin calls and puts.
In the wake of the collapse of Lehman Brothers in late 2008, the financial regulator frequently closed both the Micex and RTS to arrest the magnitude of fluctuations. Trading halts ranged from suspensions for hours or days.
Since then, new rules were both in place to prevent both exchanges from shutting if they slumped or soared by a fixed amount.
Maybe those rules no longer count. Either way, it doesn’t look great for Moscow’s aspirations to be a global financial centre as traders revert to trading Russian stocks in London or New York.
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