Russia Advances Forex and Derivatives Market Opening by 3 Hours to Attract Chinese Investors

[Image source= Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] The Russian government will move forward the opening hours of the Moscow Exchange's foreign exchange and derivatives markets by three hours starting in March. This is to attract more Chinese investors by aligning as closely as possible with Chinese financial market trading hours.

According to major foreign media on the 17th, the current opening time of the Moscow foreign exchange and derivatives markets, which is 10 a.m., will be moved to 7 a.m. starting in March. Trading will continue until midnight.

Russia and China have been continuously striving to increase bilateral trade, and this adjustment of trading hours can be seen as part of those efforts.

Igor Marich, director of the Moscow Exchange, said, "Increasing yuan trading volume is a long-term joint goal of China and Russia."

Recently, as conflicts with the U.S. and European countries have intensified over the detention of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the need to strengthen cooperation with China has grown. China also aims to expand its influence by increasing the yuan's share in the global foreign exchange market.

This measure aligns the interests of both countries.

The daily trading volume of ruble-related transactions in the global foreign exchange market is about $30 billion, of which approximately 25% is traded on the Moscow market. The trading volume of ruble and yuan on the Moscow market has increased by 27% over the past five years. However, it is still very small compared to the dollar trading volume.

Last year, the dollar-ruble trading volume on the Moscow market was 266.6 trillion rubles, whereas the yuan-ruble trading volume was only 986 billion rubles.

Director Marich said, "Extending trading hours will benefit both countries," adding, "We expect more Chinese investors to invest in foreign exchange and other assets."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.