S&P 500 cuts losses, Nasdaq trades higher as traders assess Russia-Ukraine crisis
The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average fell Thursday as Russia attacked Ukraine, causing global energy prices to jump and sending investors fleeing for the safety of fixed income assets.
The invasion comes as global equity markets were already reeling because of decades-high inflation stemming from the pandemic.
The S&P 500 was down roughly 0.6%, as the benchmark plunged further into correction territory. The index sits more than 10% away from its Jan. 3 record close. The 30-stock Dow fell about 550 points. The blue-chip measure is more than 11% off its record.
The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.4% after opening in bear market territory, down more than 20% from its record high in November. The Nasdaq has since traded out of that range.
President Joe Biden addressed Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Thursday, announcing that the U.S. will introduce a new wave of sanctions against Russia in a broad effort to isolate Moscow from the global economy. The White House has also authorized additional troops to be stationed in Germany as NATO allies look to bolster defenses in Europe, Biden said.
“Today I'm authorizing additional strong sanctions, and new limitations on what can be exported to Russia,” Biden said. “This is going to impose a severe cost on the Russian economy both immediately and over time.”
As of Thursday afternoon, stocks were well off their lows of the day. The Dow was down more than 800 points earlier in the session. The Nasdaq was down nearly 3.5% at one point.
Investors appeared to be buying the dip on some of the biggest tech names. Amazon, Netflix, Alphabet and Microsoft all traded higher — erasing sharp declines from earlier in the day. Tesla was also well off its session lows, trading just 0.1% lower. Apple shares pared losses as well, and were down about 2.4%.
Moscow launched the military action in Ukraine overnight Thursday. There were reports of explosions and missile strikes on several key Ukrainian cities including its capital, Kyiv. Russian President Vladimir Putin called the invasion “the demilitarization” of Ukraine and said Russia's plans do not include the occupation of Ukrainian territories.
NATO, the most powerful military alliance in the world, is set to reinforce its presence on its eastern front following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Biden has been presented with numerous options for the U.S. to conduct cyberattacks aimed at disrupting Russia's military advance in Ukraine, NBC News reported, citing four people familiar with the deliberations. Investors can follow along CNBC's live blog tracking Thursday's developments in Russia's attack on Ukraine.
The Russia invasion “is really worse than a baseline expectation that we had or the markets had. I would argue we are talking basically another 5% to 6% down which would put us close to 20% or bear market territory,” said Binky Chadha, chief U.S. equity and global strategist at Deutsche Bank,” on CNBC's “Squawk Box” Thursday.
Global oil benchmark Brent jumped 6.7% to $103.36 per barrel, passing the $100 level for the first time since 2014. The U.S. oil benchmark, WTI, traded 6.3% higher at just shy of $100 per barrel. Natural gas prices surged 2.9%.
Treasury prices increased and yields tumbled, with the benchmark 10-year note rate declining to 1.86% as investors sought safe-haven bonds. The move reversed a ramp in yields that took the 10-year well above 2% earlier in the session. Gold futures increased 1.5% to $1,939.80 an ounce as investors sought other safe havens. The Cboe Volatility index, a gauge of Wall Street fear, spiked to above the 37 level on Thursday, near hits highest levels of the year.
European stocks sold off sharply on Thursday after Russia began an attack on Ukraine, tipping a longstanding diplomatic crisis into a military conflict. The pan-European Stoxx 600 dropped more than 3% to its lowest point of the year.
The VanEck Russia ETF, a U.S.-traded security which invests in top Russian companies, dropped nearly 26% on Thursday.
“The worst-case scenario of Russia invading Ukraine beyond the separatist regions is a shock to the equity and oil markets. The fallout could have sizeable negative impact on the European economy which would then dampen US activity modestly,” said Kathy Bostjancic, chief U.S. economist at Oxford Economics. “In the face of such uncertainty and negative economic fallout, the Fed is likely to raise the policy rate just 25bps in March, but it will still move forward.”
Outside of some tech buying, it was a broad sell-off with investors selling shares en masse. Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase lost more than 4.5% each. Boeing lost 3%. United Airlines was down more than 5%.
Among the few stocks in the green were energy and defense stocks. Exxon Mobil was slightly higher. Enphase Energy rose more than 6%. Lockheed Martin gained 1.5% and Raytheon Technologies was marginally higher.
周四，标准普尔 500 指数和道琼斯工业平均指数下跌，原因是俄罗斯袭击了乌克兰，导致全球能源价格飙升，并促使投资者逃离固定收益资产的安全。 此次入侵之际，全球股市已经因大流行导致的数十年高通胀而摇摇欲坠。
标准普尔 500 指数下跌约 0.6%，因为基准进一步跌入修正区域。该指数距离 1 月 3 日创下的纪录收盘价超过 10%。 30 只股票道指下跌约 550 点。蓝筹股指数较其纪录低 11% 以上。
纳斯达克综合指数在熊市区域开盘后上涨 0.4%，较 11 月的历史高点下跌超过 20%。此后，纳斯达克指数超出该区间。
周四，美国总统乔·拜登就俄罗斯入侵乌克兰一事发表讲话，宣布美国将对俄罗斯实施新一轮制裁，广泛努力将莫斯科与全球经济隔离开来。拜登说，白宫还授权在德国驻扎更多部队，因为北约盟国希望加强欧洲的防御。
拜登说：“今天，我授权实施额外的严厉制裁，并对向俄罗斯出口的产品实施新的限制。” “这将立即和随着时间的推移给俄罗斯经济带来沉重的代价。”
截至周四下午，股市远低于当天的低点。道指在盘中早些时候下跌了 800 多点。纳斯达克指数一度下跌近 3.5%。
投资者似乎在买入一些最大科技公司的股价下跌。亚马逊、Netflix、Alphabet 和微软都走高——抹去了当天早些时候的大幅下跌。特斯拉也远离盘中低点，仅下跌 0.1%。苹果股价也收复失地，下跌约 2.4%。
莫斯科周四晚间在乌克兰发动了军事行动。有报道称，包括首都基辅在内的几个主要乌克兰城市发生爆炸和导弹袭击。俄罗斯总统弗拉基米尔·普京称入侵乌克兰是“非军事化”，并表示俄罗斯的计划不包括占领乌克兰领土。
在俄罗斯入侵乌克兰后，世界上最强大的军事联盟北约将加强其在东部前线的存在。
据美国全国广播公司新闻报道，四名熟悉审议情况的人士报道称，拜登已被告知美国进行网络攻击以破坏俄罗斯在乌克兰的军事推进的多种选择。投资者可以关注 CNBC 的实时博客，追踪周四俄罗斯袭击乌克兰的进展。
俄罗斯入侵“确实比我们或市场的基线预期更糟糕。德意志银行首席美国股票和全球策略师 Binky Chadha 在 CNBC 的“Squawk Box”周四表示.
全球石油基准布伦特原油价格上涨 6.7% 至每桶 103.36 美元，自 2014 年以来首次突破 100 美元水平。美国石油基准 WTI 上涨 6.3%，至每桶 100 美元附近。天然气价格飙升 2.9%。
