Global stocks tumbled, oil soared past $105 dollars a barrel and gold is testing $2,000 an ounce as investors around the world react to Russia’s ‘full scale’ invasion of Ukraine.
U.S. equity futures plunged lower Thursday, while global oil prices soared past $105 dollars per barrel and Treasury bond yields tumbled in safe-haven trading, following Russia’s ‘full-scale’ overnight invasion of Ukraine .
In what has been described as the largest military attack on European soil since the Second World War, Russian troops marched across the border into the eastern region of Donbass, accompanied by hundreds of tanks and advanced by missile attacks on several Ukrainian cities, with reports of explosions in the Kyiv capital.
“President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering,” U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement late Wednesday. “Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring. The world will hold Russia accountable.”
The United Nations Security Council has said it will hold an emergency meeting later Thursday. Ukraine declared martial law in the wake of the attack, which said Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba called a “a full-scale invasion”.
Russia Invades Ukraine, $100 Oil, $2,000 Gold, Ford, eBay – Five Things You Must Know
Global stocks tumbled in the wake of the invasion, with the MSCI World index falling 1.37% by the start of trading in Europe and Asia’s MSCI ex-Japan index, the regional benchmark, plunging 3.5%, after China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Hua Chunying, refused to use the term “invasion” in her daily briefing and said the conflict has a ““complex historical background”.
Europe’s Stoxx 600 index was marked 3.7% lower in late-morning trading in Frankfurt, while the euro fell to 1.1170 against the surging U.S. dollar.
Oil prices raced higher in anticipation of supply disruptions and sanctions on the export of Russian crude, which comprises around 10% of global supply.
“President Putin has chosen a path of bloodshed and destruction by launching this unprovoked attack on Ukraine,” said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. “The UK and our allies will respond decisively.”
The Biden administration also signaled Wednesday that it could tap the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve if prices were to spike following a Russian attack, but stockpiles are at their lowest levels since 2002 following the President’s move to release 50 million barrels last November.
Brent crude futures for April delivery, the global pricing benchmark, soared $7.72 to trade at $104.56 per barrel in early European dealing, while WTI futures for the same month, which are tightly linked to U.S. gasoline prices, surged $7.02 to $99.12 per barrel.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury note yields fell to 1.871% in overnight trading, a decline of around 13 basis points from yesterday’s levels. The moves have slashed bets on an aggressive Fed rate hike next month, with the odds of a 50 basis point increase falling to just 17.2% according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool.
Gold prices were marked 3% higher on the session at $1,965 per ounce, the highest since November of 2020. The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six global currencies, was marked 0.69% higher at 96.884, the highest in nearly a month.
On Wall Street, futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average are priced for an 710 point opening bell decline, a move that would take the average to its lowest levels in more than 9 months, while those linked to the S&P 500 are priced for a 90 point retreat. Nasdaq Composite futures are indicating a 4360 point slump for the tech-focused benchmark.
In terms of individual stocks, eBay (EBAY) – Get eBay Inc. Report shares tumbled 10.25% after the online marketplace posted stronger-than-expected fourth quarter earnings but cautioned on slowing growth in the months ahead.
Exxon Mobil (XOM) – Get Exxon Mobil Corporation Report was marked 3.15% higher amid the surge in crude prices, while its smaller rival Chevron (CVX) – Get Chevron Corporation Report gained 4%.
Ford (F) – Get Ford Motor Company Report shares, meanwhile, fell 4% after CEO Jim Farley said he has ‘no plans’ to spin-off the carmaker’s growing electric vehicle division.
