Russian rouble, stocks steady, defy global volatility

(Reuters) – The Russian rouble gained slightly on Friday, while stock markets dipped but remained steady compared with the extreme volatility of major U.S. and European bourses over recent days.

At 1225 GMT, the rouble was 0.3% stronger against the dollar at 56.35 and was up 0.2% versus the euro at 58.90, reversing earlier losses.

At Russia’s flagship annual economic forum in St. Petersburg, top Russian policymakers said the Russian economy was holding up better than expected in the face of unprecedented Western sanctions.

But in a stark warning, the head of state-run Sberbank, the country’s largest lender and a bellwether for the wider economic, said Russia could take 10 years to return to its pre-sanction levels.

Russian stock indexes also edged down in the first two hours of trading.

The dollar-denominated RTS index shed 0.1% to 1,315.6 points. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index was 0.7% lower at 2,353.4 points.

For Russian equities guide see

For Russian treasury bonds see

(Editing by William Maclean and Aditya Soni)