The ruble gained again Friday, posting its biggest three-day rally against the dollar this year, and stocks rose to a weekly high as oil rose above $75 per barrel and concern eased that Europe's debt crisis could derail the global economic recovery.
Russia's currency increased 0.5 percent to 30.68 per dollar in Moscow, taking its three-day appreciation to 3.1 percent, the most since December 2009, and giving it a 1.6 percent gain for the week. For May, it lost 4.9 percent, its worst monthly sell-off since January 2009.
"The market is turning around as oil is up, given the growing demand from the United States," said Denis Korshilov, head of foreign exchange trading at Citigroup in Moscow. "Emerging markets are improving as investors rush to put fresh risk on."
Oil for July delivery gained as much as 1.6 percent to $75.72 a barrel in New York and traded at $74.75 as of the close of official currency trading in Moscow. The U.S. Commerce Department reported Thursday that the U.S. economy grew for a third consecutive quarter and the Labor Department said jobless claims declined.
The MICEX Index gained for a third day, adding 0.2 percent to 1,309.1, its strongest closing level since May 19. Rosneft added 1.6 percent, bringing its gain this week to 8.4 percent, the biggest weekly increase since November.
The ruble fell 0.5 percent to 37.94 per euro, trimming its weekly gain to 3.3 percent, the most since February 2009. The movements against the dollar and the euro left the currency at 33.93 against the Central Bank's target currency basket.
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