Russian commodities firms Eurasia Drilling Company, Uralkali PJSC and Polyus Gold are fleeing London’s stock markets
Russians are flocking to leave the London stock exchange as commodities companies take a hammering.
Eurasia Drilling Company, Russia's largest driller, confirmed this morning its managers would buy out the company and de-list it from the London Stock Exchange, for an increased price of $11.75 a share. If the deal goes ahead, and is approved by two-thirds of shareholders, the company is set to leave the London market around 18 November.
The company's shares have lost 52.63 per cent over the last year and stood at $10.02 in early trading.
This follows an announcement from potash extractor Uralkali PJSC, saying it may delist after buying back a large portion of its shares at the end of August.
And Abusaid Kerimov, son of billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, is leading the bid to buy back the 60 per cent of shares in Russia's largest gold miner Polyus Gold not currently owned by the family.
Kirill Chuyko, head of equity research at BCS Financial Group in Moscow told Bloomberg that many more companies could follow suit.
“Each company has a specific reason, but the common one is that investors’ appetite for commodities-related stocks, especially from the emerging markets, is exhausted,” Chuyko said.
Western sanctions, which limit Russian access to capital, have also played a part in making London less attractive for Russian investment.
Bloomberg estimated that total equity sales by Russian companies are around 30-times lower than when commodity prices peaked before their recessions.
Russia's economy relies on oil and gas markets and it has been one of the emerging economies to be badly hit by the global rout.
The country's economy shrank 4.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2015, compared to a year before, forcing it to cut interest rates while the rouble appreciates against the dollar.