Shares of technology companies fell as the Fed's monetary tightening and the Russian invasion of Ukraine continued to weigh on sentiment.
The U.S. levied sanctions on nearly three dozen Russian companies and individuals that the Treasury Department said are helping Moscow evade the West's economic pressure campaign and aiding the country's defense and intelligence agencies. Among those blacklisted include Russia's largest microchip manufacturer, Mikron, a firm named Serniya Engineering that Treasury said oversaw a network of companies that procured technology and dual-use goods from abroad for the military and intelligence services, and supercomputer company T-Platforms.
The Treasury Department said some of the firms named in the announcement were shell companies set up to evade prior U.S. sanctions.
Meanwhile, Baidu shares fell in Hong Kong after U.S. regulators added the company to a growing list of U.S.-listed Chinese stocks that could be forced off American exchanges.
In deal news, Bain Capital said it was examining a possible bid for Toshiba, and Toshiba's top shareholder pledged its support to Bain, making initial steps toward fulfilling foreign shareholders' desire to take the Japanese conglomerate private. The movement on a possible deal came only a week after Toshiba management failed to gain support for its plan to break up the company into two parts.
Write to Amy Pessetto at amy.pessetto@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-31-22 1735ET
