"There is no basis for decreasing the market value of the company's shares," the company's officials said, "in connection with the stable financial situation, the overall underrating of Gazprom and the forthcoming liberalization of the market of the company's shares."
The press service noted that Gazprom's attitude to any speculations that destabilized the company's shares market was negative.
"The questions about the legitimacy of some schemes used to acquire Gazprom shares are within the jurisdiction of the respective state bodies," the company's officials stressed.
The market learned about a deputy's probe into allegedly illegal deals involving Gazprom shares yesterday, which caused Gazprom shares to fall by more than 8%. At 6:20 p.m. Moscow time, Gazprom shares on the St. Petersburg Stock Exchange dropped to 52 rubles, after having lost 13.33% of their value since the closing on Tuesday.
However, at 11:00 a.m. Moscow time on Friday, Gazprom's shares on the same stock exchange were up 3.38% to 55.73 rubles per share.
In the opinion of Olma analysts, valid growth on the Russian market is not possible given the uncertain conditions surrounding Yukos, delays in reforms of the electricity sector, and the news about gray schemes used by non-residents to acquire Gazprom shares.
Troika-Dialog experts said that the overall market would grow slightly on Friday. According to a Gazprom press release, there is no risk of the state losing control of the company.
Brokerkreditservis experts said that it was profitable to purchase cheap Gazprom shares, as "the deputy's inquiry will not develop into a Gazprom case."
