Moscow - Russia's two leading stock exchanges halted trading for the second day Wednesday as banks appealed to the finance ministry for emergency loans amid global market turmoil.

Russia's Micex market and RTS suspended trading indefinitely at 12:10 pm Moscow time at the request of Russia's financial watchdog, both indexes said in statements.

The ruble-denominated Micex fell 3.09 per cent before trading was halted, a spokeswoman was quoted by news agency Interfax as saying, and the dollar-denominated RTS plunged 6.39 per cent in its first two hours of trading.

The RTS index lost 57 per cent since soaring to record heights in May.

Banks were worst hit as the market experienced a liquidity squeeze. State-owned financial giant Sberbank dropped 6.1 per cent, to 32.55 rubles, and Russia's second-largest bank was down 14 per cent to a record low.

The Finance Ministry earmarked 1.13 trillion rubles (44.37 billion dollars) in loans over three months to inject liquidity into the financial sector.

Trade was suspended for a little more than an hour on Tuesday when both indexes fell more than 10 per cent.

Analysts blamed turmoil on Wall Street and worry over ongoing politcal uncertainties after Russia's war with Georgia last month. (dpa)