GLOBAL MARKETS DJIA 33294.95 -597.65 -1.76% Nasdaq 13532.46 -218.94 -1.59% S&P 500 4306.26 -67.68 -1.55% FTSE 100 7330.20 -128.05 -1.72% Nikkei Stock 26363.96 -480.76 -1.79% Hang Seng 22560.87 -200.84 -0.88% Kospi 2697.98 -1.20 -0.04% SGX Nifty* 16556.50 -151.5 -0.91% *March contract USD/JPY 114.97-98 +0.05% Range 115.07 114.79 EUR/USD 1.1122-25 -0.01% Range 1.1137 1.1113 CBOT Wheat March $10.016 per bushel Spot Gold $1,936.75/oz -0.4% Nymex Crude (NY) $104.43 $8.71 U.S. STOCKS
U.S. stock indexes fell and bond yields slipped Tuesday while oil prices rose to multiyear highs, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continued to whipsaw through markets.
Stock markets have been battered in 2022, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both posting their worst two-month stretches since March 2020 to start the year.
The S&P 500 fell 67.68 points, or 1.5%, to 4306.26, on Tuesday. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 597.65 points, or 1.8%, to 33294.95, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite was down 218.94 points, or 1.6%, to 13532.46.
ASIAN STOCKS
Japanese stocks were lower, dragged by falls in financial and auto stocks, as uncertainty persisted over the war in Ukraine. Dai-ichi Life Holdings fell 4.7% and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group was 2.7% lower as U.S. Treasury yields fell sharply overnight. Nissan Motor was 3.3% lower and Bridgestone slipped 4.8% amid concerns about higher costs of raw materials and supply-chain disruptions. Meanwhile, energy and mining stocks were higher with Inpex gaining 4.3% and Sumitomo Metal Mining adding 3.3%. Investors were focusing on headlines on Ukraine. The Nikkei Stock Average was 1.9% lower at 26333.71.
South Korea's Kospi edged 0.1% lower at 2695.92 in mixed early trade. Financial and airline shares retreated while refineries and shipbuilders advanced. The Russian troops intensifying their offensive on major Ukrainian cities after peace talks ended without a deal was weighing on investor sentiment, though stronger-than-expected South Korean trade data was helping to offset the downbeat mood. USD/KRW was 0.2% higher at 1,204.70 on risk aversion. KB Financial Group fell 3.0%. Index heavyweight Samsung Electronics was 0.6% lower.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.5% to 22650.08, tracking overnight losses in the U.S. and European equity markets amid the escalating Russia-Ukraine military conflict. Risk-off sentiment prevails across the broader markets, CMC Markets said. Worst performers on the HSI include Xinyi Glass sliding 4.8%, NetEase dropping 3.1% and HSBC Holdings falling 3.5%. Meanwhile, oil-related companies were higher with CNOOC Ltd. adding 3.6% and PetroChina gaining 2.4% amid this morning's surge in crude-oil prices. The Hang Seng TECH Index was 0.3% lower at 5138.87.
Chinese stocks were lower in morning trade, weakening from solid gains earlier this week. The benchmark Shanghai Composite shed 0.5% to 3472.65, the Shenzhen Composite Index was down 1.0% at 2304.18 and the ChiNext Price Index was 2.1% lower at 2824.68. Central China Securities said the recent trading momentum showed that investors' risk-off sentiment has been easing and buying interest looks to be improving. However, the relatively muted trading volume means one still needs to monitor whether the market can deliver a more sustained rebound. The brokerage advised cautious optimism in A-shares.
FOREX
Asian currencies mostly strengthened against USD as gains in U.S. stock futures in the morning Asian session spurred mild risk appetite. However, strength in regional currencies may be capped by the escalating Russia-Ukraine military conflict. The conflict clearly shows no signs of easing, with Russia ramping up its attacks on Ukraine and adding to concerns of further economic disruptions and more persistent pricing pressures ahead, IG says. USD/KRW edges 0.1% lower to 1,204.35 and USD/TWD is down 0.1% at 28.05 while AUD/USD rises 0.3% to 0.7273.
METALS
Gold fell in early morning Asian trading in a likely technical correction after futures marked their highest finish in 13 months overnight. However, the precious metal's decline may be limited. The escalation of the Ukraine conflict has boosted demand for havens such as gold, and there has been increased demand for the precious metal as an inflation hedge, said Phillip Nova. Gold has also found support amid worries that global economic growth may slow after Western nations imposed more sanctions on Russia, Phillip Nova added. Spot gold was down 0.4% at $1,936.75/oz.
OIL SUMMARY
Oil climbed as escalating Ukraine conflict was boosting supply concerns. Global companies and countries were either disassociating themselves from Russian companies voluntarily or being prevented from trading due to sanctions, including for oil, which was putting stress on oil markets, NAB said. The WSJ notes key European financiers to commodity trade houses have already begun curbing financing for commodities, as have Chinese banks, NAB added. Front-month WTI crude oil futures was up 5.1% at $108.68/bbl; front-month Brent crude oil futures were 5.1% higher at $110.29/bbl.
The International Energy Agency's release of 60 million barrels of emergency oil reserves in response to high oil prices likely won't be enough to prevent higher crude prices, Goldman Sachs said. "We do not view this as sufficient relief, representing an only one-month offset to a potential disruption to one-third of Russia's 6 million barrel/day seaborne oil export flows," GS said. "This leaves risk to our one-month $115/bbl Brent price forecast still skewed to the upside."
TOP HEADLINES Russia Targets Ukrainian Civilian Areas in Shift to Demoralize Resistance Biden's State of the Union Address Pushes Unity Against Russia, Economic Plans Biden Says U.S. Will Close Off Airspace To All Russian Flights Apple, Ford Retreat From Russia; Volkswagen Warns of Disruption Exxon to Shut Down Oil Production in Russia After Ukraine Attack Boeing Ends Support for Russian Airlines Russia Scrambles to Maintain Oil Sales, Lifeblood of Economy Russia Races to Protect Financial System From Barrage of Sanctions U.S. Says It Is Realigning Its China Trade Policy U.S. Panel Finds No National-Security Concerns With Chinese Plane Deal Australia's Economy Surged Back to Life in the Fourth Quarter as Delta Lockdowns Ended California Drought Grows Dire Again After Two Record Dry Months U.S., IEA Agree to Release 60 Million Barrels From Oil Stockpiles Amid Ukraine Turmoil U.S. factories grow faster as omicron wanes, ISM finds, but shortages still a barrier Germany Inflation Accelerated in February Salesforce Sales Rise as Demand for Cloud Services Continues Kremlin-Backed Media Outlets Face Growing Global Crackdown Abbott Recalls More Baby Formula After Another Infant Dies Nord Stream 2 Gas Pipeline Lays Off All Employees
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-01-22 2215ET
