Inflationsängste lassen Aktienmärkte weltweit auf Jahrestiefststände fallen; Gold glänzt
By Saikat Chatterjee
LONDON, Mar 8 (Reuters) – World stocks traded at one-year lows on Tuesday, while gold rose above a key level at $2,000, as the prospect of a ban on Russian oil imports boosted crude prices and raised concerns about inflation and economic growth.
* The U.S. government is prepared to go ahead with a ban on Russian crude imports even if European allies do not follow, U.S. sources indicated, while Russia warned that prices could soar to $300 a barrel and that it could shut down the main gas pipeline to Germany if the West halts imports over the invasion of Ukraine.
* At 1022 GMT, international benchmark Brent crude, which briefly topped $139 a barrel in the previous session, was gaining 1.87% at $125.49.
* European stocks were up more than 1% in early trading, although some analysts noted that this could be a temporary respite.
* Since mid-February, European banks have lost a quarter of their share value and a hit to profits seems inevitable. After the worst day for the S&P 500 since October 2020, Wall Street futures pointed to more losses.
* „The price action seems to reflect concerns about a sharper slowdown/recession in the global economy due to the energy price crisis,“ strategists at Mizuho (T:8411) said in a note.
* MSCI’s world equity index was down 0.2%, accumulating a 10% loss since the beginning of February. In early Asian trading it was down as much as 0.5%, touching its lowest level since March 2021.
* An Asian stock index lost 1%, following a choppy Wall Street session, with Japan and Hong Kong leading the losses.
* Price movements in foreign exchange markets reflected growing investor nervousness, with the dollar advancing against its Australian counterpart, indicating increased pessimism about global growth prospects. The exchange market volatility indicator reached its highest level in two years.
* US crude oil rose by 1.9% to 121.70 dollars per barrel, while the prices of many other commodities, such as nickel, continued to rise as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine shows no signs of calming down.
* The yield on benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds advanced to 1.8369%, up from 1.749% the previous day. The return on two-year notes, rising on traders‘ expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates, reached 1.5947%, up from 1.548% on Monday.
* Der Wiederanstieg des Rohöls und anderer Rohstoffe wird den globalen Inflationsimpuls nur noch verstärken, da diese Woche erwartet wird, dass der US-Verbraucherpreisindex im Februar im Vergleich zum Vorjahr um stratosphärische 7,9 % gestiegen ist, gegenüber 7,5 % im Januar.
* Trotz der sich verschlechternden Wachstumsaussichten in Europa verbesserte sich der Euro um 0,1 % auf 1,0857 $, nachdem er in der vergangenen Woche um 3 % auf den niedrigsten Stand seit Mitte 2020 gefallen war.
* Der Dollar-Index, der den Dollar mit einem Korb von sechs wichtigen Währungen vergleicht, notierte unverändert bei 99,212 Einheiten.