NEW YORK: European and US stocks tumbled as investors monitored the worsening toll of the Russian invasion of Ukraine amid worries over high oil prices.
Equity markets in Europe and New York rose early in the day, but the rally fizzled amid fresh headlines of carnage in Ukraine and new sanctions against Russia.
The losses were greater in Europe. In London, the FTSE 100 skidded 2.6% to 7,238.85, in Frankfurt, the DAX lost 2.2% to 13,698.40 and in Paris, the CAC 40 fell 1.8% to 6,378.37. The Euro Stoxx 50 shed 2.1% to 3,741.78.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.29% to 33,794.66. The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.53% to 4,363.49, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 1.56% to 13,537.94 following big drops in Amazon and Tesla.
Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 1.48-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.12-to-1 ratio favoured decliners.
Volume on US exchanges was 12.6 billion shares, the lowest in six days, according to Refinitiv data.
“Any rebounds we’re seeing in risk appetite appear more driven by hope than reality and as we’re seeing today, they’re not lasting,” said Oanda’s Craig Erlam.
With more sanctions on Russia in the offing, “I struggle to see market sentiment dramatically improving for the foreseeable future.”
Hopes for a quick end to the war faded as French President Emmanuel Macron said he fears the “worst is to come” after a conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russian forces took the Black Sea port of Kherson in southern Ukraine, the first major city to fall after a string of setbacks for Moscow. They also pounded the besieged port city of Mariupol, which is without water or power.
“It feels like more escalation,“ said Art Hogan, chief strategist at National Securities, adding that investors are unnerved by the rise in oil prices over worries about the stability of Russian crude production.
“The longer you stay at elevated levels, the more of a drag there is on the global economy,“ Hogan said. – AFP, Reuters
