Home ›› 08 Mar 2022 ›› Stock
World stock markets tumbled, metals prices struck record highs and oil neared an all-time peak on widespread financial fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Frankfurt and Paris led the losses in Europe with drops of more than three per cent in midday deals after Hong Kong closed down almost four per cent, extending last week’s sharp drops for global equities.
Monday also saw benchmark Brent North Sea crude oil soar to a near 14-year high close to $140 per barrel.
Brent reached $139.13 before cooling to $125.57. The record high stands at $147.50, achieved in 2008 during the global financial crisis.
Elsewhere Monday, European gas prices struck record peaks on energy supply fears after the United States proposed an embargo on Russian crude.
Russia is one of the world’s biggest crude producers and is also a leading supplier of natural gas.
Commodities have been red hot since Russia’s assault on its neighbour, with gold on Monday back above $2,000 an ounce thanks to the metal’s status as a haven investment.
Aluminium, copper and palladium prices kicked off the week with record highs and nickel rocketed by more than 25 per cent in value.
“Commodity and energy prices have inevitably been under upward pressure, with escalating sanctions against Russia and the shuttering of some Ukrainian ports driving the search for replacement supplies of crops, metals and energy,” noted Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor.
Ukraine, one of the world’s top wheat producers, has set export restrictions on the crop and other agricultural products, the Interfax Ukraine news agency reported.
The conflict has pushed wheat prices higher as Russia is the world’s top exporter of the cereal and Ukraine is the fourth according to US official estimates.
The surge in prices is handing a headache to central banks, which have already begun removing pandemic-era cash stimulus and are raising interest rates to bring down inflation that stood at the highest levels in decades even before the invasion.
