A report from Deutsche Bank saying former Yukos chief Mikhail Khodorkovsky has a 50-50 chance of early release is being cited as a primary cause for Monday’s bullish market in Russia, as the benchmark MICEX index rose more than 1.5 percent.
Deutsche Bank’s head of research and strategy for Russia Yaroslav Lissovolik wrote in a note that the odds of Khodorkovsky being granted parole are “significantly higher than any time in the past,” according to Bloomberg News.
“Releasing Khodorkovsky would boost Russian stocks five percent to 10 percent,” he added. The chief strategist at Troika Dialog also said he puts the odds of an early release for Khodorkovsky at 50-50.
Earlier this month Russia’s Presidential Council on Human Rights urged President Dmitry Medvedev to pardon Khodorkovsky ahead of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s inauguration, scheduled for May 7.
Medvedev did order Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika to review the guilty verdicts against Khodorkovsky. Chaika has until April 1 to present his findings.
