Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Russian stocks rose for a sixth day on speculation Barack Obama's victory in the U.S. presidential election will improve relations between Moscow and Washington.

OAO Sberbank, Russia's biggest bank, paced the gains. OAO GMK Norilsk Nickel climbed 6 percent at the close after advancing as much as 32 percent.

The 30-stock Micex Index climbed 1.1 percent to 775.19, capping a sixth day of gains, the largest winning streak since President Dmitry Medvedev's inauguration in May. The ruble- denominated index earlier gained as much as 14 percent, triggering a one-hour halt in the Micex Stock Exchange. Russia's RTS Index advanced 3.4 percent to 829.80, while the MSCI Emerging Markets Index added 0.6 percent.

Obama's win may improve ties between Russia and the U.S., which suffered when Russia sent warplanes and troops into neighboring Georgia in August. Medvedev today congratulated Obama and said he seeks a ``constructive dialogue.''

Better U.S. relations may also encourage Russia to focus on its own economic problems rather than blaming the U.S. for the world financial crisis, Renaissance Capital Deputy Chairman Bob Foresman said.

``Investors are very sensitive as to Russia being perceived as an outcast from the U.S.,'' Foresman said in an interview. Improved relations in the next administration would ``make it more difficult for the Russian authorities to point to the bogeyman as the U.S.''

Sberbank

``The market likes Obama, and the fact that the outcome is clear is already a stabilizing factor,'' said Thomas Fasbender, director at ParusKreml Capital Management in Moscow. Fasbender said he doubts the RTS will fall below its 2008 low of 549.43.

Sberbank, Russia's biggest bank, climbed 0.78 ruble, or 2.8 percent, to 29.17 rubles, a second day of gains. Russia's capital outflow, related to the ``global markets shock,'' is past its peak, Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said. BNP Paribas estimates that $140 billion has left Russia since early August.

Separately, credit default swaps on Russia's government debt fell to 417.5 basis points from 1,132 basis points on Oct. 23, indicating a decline in investor perception of default risk in the country.

The six days of gains in Russian indexes, which have technically exited a bear market, may not prevent the market from finding new lows in coming months, according to Nerea Heras, emerging markets fund manager at Santander Asset Management in Madrid.

`Catching Up'

``Russia is catching up with the other stock markets since it was closed the last few days,'' Heras said by telephone. ``You are going to have these kinds of jumps sometimes, but nothing that is going to be resistant in the long term.''

Norilsk Nickel climbed 170 rubles, or 6 percent, to 2,989.68 rubles, a sixth day of gains. Russia's government will get a seat on the board of the country's biggest mining company for the first time in a decade after approving a $4.5 billion loan to help refinance the debt of United Co. Rusal, Norilsk's second- biggest shareholder.

The market looks ``favorably'' on an increase in government influence at Norilsk during the conflict among shareholders and falling nickel prices, said Yuri Volov, an analyst at state- controlled Bank of Moscow.

To contact the reporter on this story: William Mauldin in Moscow at wmauldin1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 5, 2008 11:36 EST