Russian Stocks Slide Amid Concerns Of S&P Downgrade

Russian stocks declined for a second straight day on Thursday as fears that the country is in for another sovereign downgrade had traders reaching for the sell button. The MICEX index dropped 1% to 1,360.12, building on a 1.3% loss from Wednesday. The smaller RTS index slumped 1.8% to 1,029.14. The weakness came amid concerns that Standard & Poor's will cut Russia's credit rating to junk when it announces its review on the country on Friday, according to media reports. Last week, Moody's Investors Service cut Russia's debt rating by one notch to Baa2 from Baa1, citing concerns over the Ukraine crisis and the international sanctions.