Stock markets around the world plunged yesterday on the back of Russian military action in Ukraine.
The Nasdaq Composite Index on Wall Street fell more than 3 percent at the start of yesterday, after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine last November, dropping more than 20 percent from its peak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.91 points at 32830.33 points at the start of the trading session, down more than 10 percent from its record high of 4 on January 4.
According to Reuters, the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 Index opened 1.65 percent lower at 4,155.77 points, while the Nasdaq was down 3.45 percent at 12,587.88 points. All three indices increased their losses in early trading.
On the other hand, European stocks fell 3.2 percent yesterday, and investors withdrew from risky assets in the wake of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, raising fears of war in Europe, boosting inflation and stifling economic growth.
The Pan-European Stoxx 600 index fell 3.2 percent, the lowest level since May 2021.
Germany’s DAX index fell 4 percent to its lowest level since March 2021, the biggest loss since sales due to concerns over Germany’s high dependence on Russian energy imports.
The rise in oil prices limited the losses of the British FTSE 100 index, which fell 3.9 percent.
The European oil and gas sector recorded the biggest decline, falling 1.2 percent, with oil prices rising by about 6 percent, with Brent crude rising above $ 100 a barrel for the first time since 2014.
European banks most exposed to Russia, including the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank, Unicredit and Society General, fell 5 to 6.6 percent, while the broader banking index fell 4.2 percent. The technology, travel and entertainment sectors also reported losses.
The Moscow Stock Exchange saw a sharp decline, with Russia losing about 40 percent of its key index “RTS” after launching a military operation in Ukraine. The Russian ruble is also under pressure.
In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei index touched a 15-month low at the end of yesterday, with investors around the world avoiding risky assets.
The Nikkei Index ended 1.81 percent lower at 25,970.82 points, its lowest level since November 20, 2020, and fell 2.5 percent during the session to make up for some of its initial losses.
The broader Topics Index fell 1.25 percent to 1,857.58 points. Both indices recorded losses in the fifth session in a row.
Shares of “Fast Retailing”, owner of clothing store “Uniclo”, fell sharply in the Nikkei index, falling 3.82 percent, and SoftBank Group 6.83 percent.
Among the sub-sectors, the aviation sector declined by 5.4 per cent.
Chinese stock markets plunged in yesterday’s trade, as global markets slumped due to geopolitical uncertainty. The Shanghai Composite was down 1.7 percent at 3,429 points, while the Shenzhen Index was down 2.63 percent at 2,282 points. S. The i300 was up 2.03 percent at 4,529 points.
For that, the Dubai Stock Exchange index fell 1.8 percent to 3,274 points, the biggest one-day fall in a month, as stock markets plunged in the Gulf yesterday. The index fell about 3.7 percent in the previous session.
Shares of “Emirates Refreshments” fell about 10 percent and suffered the biggest loss in percentage terms. Leading “Emaar Properties” shares fell 3.4 percent, while Dubai Islamic Bank fell 2.2 percent.
Shares of “Dubai Financial Market” fell 4.27 percent, “Dubai Investment” 0.87 percent, “Emaar Development” 3.17 percent, “Emirates NBD” 1.42 percent, and GFH Financial Group 3.27 percent.
The Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange index fell 0.3 percent to 9,072 points. Shares of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank fell 0.23 percent, Aktia Group 3.48 percent, Alta Properties 3.05 percent, Alpha Abu Dhabi Holdings 1.16 percent, Al Qudra Holdings 3.43 percent and Dana Gas 1.85 percent.
The Qatar Stock Exchange index is down 0.8 percent at 12,639 points. The Bahraini index is down 1 percent to 1,944 points. The Muscat index is down 0.2 percent at 4,037 points. The Kuwaiti index closed at 8320 points.
In Cairo, the leading stock market index in the Egyptian stock market led to losses, falling 3.6 percent to 10,891 points, the biggest drop since March 2020. Shares of the finance and technology sectors were very low.
During yesterday’s session, the market capitalization fell by 24.38 billion pounds to close at 689.285 billion pounds. Foreign exchange transactions net sold for .5 69.52 million, while Egyptians and Arabs sought to buy nets for 5. 5.91 million and 63.6 million respectively.