The MICEX Index is one of the main Russian stock market indices reflecting the state of the stock market. It is formed on the basis of the dynamics of the shares of several leading Russian companies.
Index content
The MICEX Index is a consolidated indicator calculated on the basis of quotations of securities of the largest Russian companies, whose shares are traded on the stock market. Modern exchange trading technologies allow calculating the value of the index in real time: thus, after the completion of each transaction with securities of one of the companies included in the index, its value is recalculated. As a result, the directional dynamics of the indicator is formed, which within a certain time can be characterized by an upward or downward trend.
The total number of companies whose securities are used to calculate the index is 50 organizations. They represent all the main sectors of the Russian economy: for example, from the banking sector, the index includes Sberbank of Russia and VTB Bank, from the oil and gas sector - Gazprom, Rosneft and Surgutneftegaz, from the telecommunications sector - MTS, Rostelecom and etc.
At the same time, the composition of the MICEX index is subject to periodic revision in order to ensure its maximum compliance with the current market situation. Depending on the demand for certain shares, as well as their dynamics, the securities included in the index can be replaced with others. Thus, as part of the latest modification of the composition, the index included the shares of Yandex and Acron, and excluded the shares of MOESK and Mechel. The current composition of the MICEX index is valid until December 15, 2014, and after this date should be revised.
Index dynamics
For the first time, the MICEX index was calculated on September 22, 1997: in fact, this date has become a key date for the Russian stock market, which has acquired its own status indicator. The new index was assigned the generally accepted international designation - MICEX, which is still used for it. The starting point for its calculation was a value of 100 points, but it is obvious that the main characteristic of any stock index, including the MICEX, is its dynamics.
With the success and failure of Russian stocks, the value of the index changed rapidly. Thus, the minimum value reached by the index for more than 15 years of its existence was 18.53 points: this event took place during the notorious 1998 crisis that brought down the Russian economy. The maximum value of the index reached to date was 1970, 46 points: it was recorded in 2007, which became one of the most successful for the domestic stock market.
