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Nov. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Russian stocks climbed for a fifth day, capping their best week on record on speculation the government is supporting the country's stock market.

OAO Gazprom and VTB Group, both controlled by the state, each rose more than 3 percent.

The Micex Index advanced 4.8 percent to 766.92 in Moscow today, completing a fifth consecutive session of gains, the longest such series since May. The measure climbed 49 percent in the week, the most since Bloomberg began tracking it in 2001. The Micex Stock Exchange will be closed Nov. 3 and Nov. 4 for public holidays in Russia.

The RTS Index advanced 3.9 percent to 802.39, posting a weekly gain of 46 percent, its best ever. Still, the dollar- denominated RTS's 36 percent decline in October was the worst month since Russia defaulted on ruble-denominated debt in 1998.

``We assume it was the state, like an invisible hand, supporting the market when it's growing without any external booster,'' said Constantin Demchenko, head of trading at Everest Asset Management in Moscow.

Russia's state-run development bank Vnesheconombank, or VEB, will probably get about 5 billion rubles ($190 million) a day from the Finance Ministry to boost Russian financial markets, the Interfax news service reported Oct. 30.

A Saturday trading session is an opportunity for the government to ``push prices considerably higher without expending too much firepower,'' Chris Weafer, chief strategist at UralSib Financial Corp. in Moscow, said in a note to investors today.

Volume Halves

Stocks trading volume on the Micex today was 52.3 billion rubles, less than half the average over the last three months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Russia's 50-stock RTS Index has sunk 65 percent this year after Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called for a probe into coal and steel producer OAO Mechel, a conflict with Georgia, oil prices plunged from a July high and margin calls from leveraged investors pushed stocks lower amid the global credit crisis.

The advances Russian stocks recorded this past week may be reversed if the U.S. releases negative economic data next week, Demchenko said in an e-mailed message.

Gazprom, Russia's biggest publicly traded company, today added 7.12 rubles, or 5.3 percent, to 140.32 rubles on the Micex, a fifth day of gains. Gazprom's nine-month profit climbed 51 percent to 433 billion rubles under Russian accounting standards, Interfax reported.

VTB, Russia's second-biggest bank, climbed 0.13 kopek, or 3.1 percent, to 4.3 kopeks, its fourth gain in the week. A kopek is one hundredth of a ruble. VTB lent almost 70 billion rubles ($2.6 billion) to Russian companies this past week alone as it increased its credits to non-financing companies by 25 percent since July.

Tatneft Suspended

Trading in OAO Tatneft, the oil producer in Russia's republic of Tatarstan, was suspended on the Micex exchange after it jumped 30 percent to 53.36 rubles, the biggest gain in the Micex Index. Tatneft shares were suspended all day yesterday, thus missing out on the market's gains then.

Russia may cut its crude oil export duty to $287.30 a metric ton from today, RIA Novosti reported, citing an unidentified government official. Government ministers are considering reducing the crude oil export duty retroactively from Oct. 1, the state-run news service said.

OAO Lukoil, Russia's second-biggest oil company, advanced 6.7 percent to 1,097.38 rubles.