Agency Report

World oil prices rallied and European equities sank Tuesday with investors unnerved by key crude producer Russia’s attack on Ukraine.

New York’s West Texas Intermediate (WTI) soared as high as $101.67 per barrel in mid-afternoon deals, on the eve of a key output meeting of OPEC and non-member producers, including Russia.

Brent leapt to $104.60, approaching its 2014 peak of $105.79, which it hit last Thursday when Russia launched its assault.

Frankfurt and Paris stock markets accelerated losses to shed about two percent in mid-afternoon deals.

London slid 0.7 percent, as investors shrugged off Asian gains. Wall Street followed suit, dropping in early trades.

“European stocks are once again heading lower with Russia/Ukraine headlines continuing to hurt sentiment,” City Index analyst Fiona Cincotta told AFP.

“Losses on the FTSE are modest, thanks to a strong performance from resource stocks, as commodity prices rise.”

Frankfurt’s steeper losses were “unsurprising given Germany’s reliance on Russian energy”, she added.

Bitcoin gained nearly five percent to $43,705 with strong support for the world’s most popular cryptocurrency in Russia, where many investors are seeking shelter from the nation’s sanctions-ravaged economy.

Key European stocks indices had also fallen Monday after world powers imposed new sanctions on Russia.

With no let-up in the assault on its neighbour, Russia has been pummelled by a series of widespread and debilitating sanctions.

The measures have sent the ruble crashing to a record low and forced the central bank to more than double interest rates to 20 percent.

The Moscow Stock Exchange remained shut on Tuesday in an attempt by authorities to stave off another widely expected dramatic sell-off.

The crisis has also ramped up fears about supplies of crucial commodities from the region, including wheat and nickel but particularly crude, just as demand surges owing to economic reopenings.

The conflict provides an extra headache for global central banks, who will likely have to recalibrate their plans to tighten monetary policy as they try to support their economies.

In London, Shell’s share price dipped 0.3 percent after the energy major announced it would sell its stake in all joint ventures with Gazprom, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The news came after rival energy titan BP also signalled its exit from Russia.

TotalEnergies on Tuesday said that while it would stop providing capital for new projects in Russia, the French giant was not withdrawing from current projects in the country.

Nevertheless, “there has been a mass exodus by Western companies from Russia in recent days as the Kremlin looks increasingly isolated and fragile”, said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Sophie Lund-Yates.

“It is clear that while most pain will be felt by Moscow, these decisions will weigh on European businesses too, which will come through in their next quarterly results,” she noted.

– Key figures around 1545 GMT –  

Brent North Sea crude: UP 6.2 percent at $104.02 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 6.2 percent at $101.67 per barrel

London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.7 percent at 7,408.51 points

Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 2.1 percent at 14,161.51 points 

Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 2.2 percent at 6,512.18 points 

EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 2.3 percent at 3,835.07 points 

New York – Dow: DOWN 0.7 percent 33,676.43 points 

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.2 percent at 26,844.72 (close)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.2 percent at 22,761.71 (close)

Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.8 percent at 3,488.83 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1153 from $1.1219 late Monday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3400 from $1.3420

Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.27  pence from 83.60 pence

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 114.90 yen from 115.00 yen