Russia ETF Inflows Surge as Ukraine Tension Fades - Businessweek

Russia ETF Inflows Surge as Ukraine Tension Fades - Businessweek:



"The biggest U.S. exchange-traded fund that holds Russian shares surged the most in two years as inflows increased on signs President Vladimir Putin is seeking to ease tension with Ukraine.



The Market Vectors Russia ETF (RSX:US) gained 11 percent in May, the first advance in five months and the steepest since January 2012. The Bloomberg Russia-US Equity Index of the most-traded Russian stocks in the U.S. rallied 9.3 percent last month, led by OAO Sberbank, eastern Europe’s largest lender, and Internet company Yandex NV. The gauges followed the Micex Index’s 9.7 percent May increase, the biggest since 2011.



Investors had dumped Russian stocks earlier this year as Putin moved to annex the Black Sea Crimean peninsula, pushing the Micex down 13 percent in the first four months of 2014 and leaving Russian equities at their cheapest (INDEXCF:US) versus the MSCI Emerging Market Index since 2008. With Ukraine electing a new president on May 25, net inflows from U.S.-based ETFs surged to $152.5 million last month, 12 times the April total, data compiled by Bloomberg show."



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