The EU and Britain also announced plans to target banks and the Russian elite, while Germany halted Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, raising Europe’s benchmark gas price by about 11%.
Gold faces flat safe-haven bids as higher US yields
Gold was flat on Wednesday, near a nine-month high hit in the previous session, as safe-haven demand was offset by a rise in Treasury yields after the first wave of US and European sanctions on Russia to send troops to eastern Ukraine Was.
Spot gold was marginally lower at $1,898.63 an ounce on Tuesday after hitting an all-time high of $1,913.89 an ounce on Tuesday. US gold futures were down 0.3% at $1,901.90.
SGX Nifty rises 100 points in opening deals
Nifty futures were trading 103 points higher at 17,241 on the Singapore Exchange, indicating a positive start for the Indian benchmark.
Asia shares hold steady as investors anticipate Ukraine’s growth
Asian stocks were stable on Wednesday and demand for safe havens eased slightly as investors viewed Russian military activities near Ukraine and early Western sanctions leaving room to avoid war.
However, commodity prices remain high and traders are still nervous about the situation in the eastern edge of Europe.
Oil rose to a seven-year high overnight, while the S&P 500 index fell more than 10% from January’s record highs in correction zone.
Shares in China edged up marginally and were up in Hong Kong, with Japan closing for the emperor’s birthday holiday. The S&P 500 fell in a correction Tuesday after slipping 10% from its January peak. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.1%.
US President Joe Biden left the door open for diplomacy as he announced sanctions on two Russian banks and some elite close to President Vladimir Putin.
S&P 500 futures rose 0.3%, Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.4%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.2%, South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.3%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was steady and China’s Shanghai Composite index rose 0.2%.
Wall Street stocks fell overnight after President Joe Biden unveiled new sanctions on Moscow, while oil price growth was limited by hopes the measures would not affect Russia’s crude output.
In a White House speech, Biden said the penalties on Russia would go “far beyond” existing sanctions and include moves against two Russian banks and the withdrawal of the country from Western financing by targeting Moscow’s sovereign debt.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.4% at 33,596.61, the S&P 500 was down 1% at 4,304.76, and the Nasdaq was down 1.2% at 13,381.52.
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