(ABM FN) The Brussels stock market will start to decline on Tuesday, after Russia violated Ukraine’s sovereignty on Monday night by recognizing the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk.
Euro Stoxx futures pointed to a loss of more than 1 percent an hour before the stock bell.
On Monday, the Bel20 index closed down 1.9 percent at 3,969.13 points as geopolitical tensions reached a boiling point.
With this recognition, President Vladimir Putin is violating the 2014 Minsk Accords, making a diplomatic solution impossible. Putin said in a letter that he will also send “peacekeepers” to Donetsk and Luhansk, which means that Russian forces will enter Ukrainian territory.
“This move is a flagrant violation of both international law and the Minsk agreements,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel said Monday evening. “The union will respond by imposing sanctions on those involved in this illegal act,” they added.
The White House also said it would impose sanctions on Russia. President Joe Biden has already barred American companies from doing business with the two rebellious regions.
Investors appear to have been somewhat misled in recent trading days due to the ongoing escalation in Ukraine. On Monday, European stocks started in the green after news of a possible meeting between Putin and Biden. Wall Street closed its doors yesterday to celebrate President’s Day.
However, the Russian stock market eventually lost more than 10 percent on Monday, and the inevitable possibility of sanctions also left significant effects on the energy market. US oil futures are up nearly 4 percent this morning to $94.40 a barrel, while gas futures are up even faster.
The rapid rise in energy prices comes at a time when Western countries are already suffering from high rates of inflation. On Monday, it was announced that German producer prices rose by at least 25 percent year-on-year in January. However, the European Central Bank is sticking to a near zero interest rate for the time being, especially in light of the high government debt of southern member states in particular.
In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 3 percent this morning. Tokyo and Shanghai lost less than 2 percent, while the commodity-sensitive exchange in Sydney limited the damage to 1 percent.
On the macroeconomic front, investors today are looking forward to, among other things, the German Ifo Business Confidence Index.
company news
The rental income of the real estate holding company Accentis in 2021 increased from 13.04 to 13.58 million euros. EBIT more than doubled from 9.09 to 18.56 million euros, and net result increased from 5.81 to 17.03 million dollars.
Greenyard has seen its turnover grow even more in the first nine months of the current broken fiscal year.
Azelis has entered into a new agreement with Roquette to distribute its range of pharmaceutical cellulose products in India.
Deutsche Bank lowered Umicore’s target price by €4 to €40, unchanged in its Keep rating.
Wall Street positions closed for Friday
The Standard & Poor’s 500 lost 0.7 percent on Friday at 4,348.87 points, the Dow Jones fell 0.7 percent to 34,079.18 points, and the Nasdaq lost 1.2 percent at 13,548.07 points.
Source: ABM Financial News
From Beursplein 5, Editors ABM Financial News Keep a close eye on developments on the stock exchanges, and the Amsterdam Stock Exchange in particular. The information in this column is not intended as professional investment advice or as a recommendation to make certain investments.
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