Dow futures fall 450 points as traders assess ripple effects of Russia sanctions
U.S. stock futures moved lower in overnight trading on Sunday as investors grew concerned about the economic ramifications of the fighting between Russia and Ukraine.
Dow futures dropped about 450 points. S&P 500 futures fell 2.3% and Nasdaq 100 futures lost 2.7%.
U.S. and global equities experienced volatile trading last week as geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine escalated. Early Thursday morning local time, Moscow launched military action in Ukraine.
Throughout the weekend, the Russian advance into Ukraine continued. Russian military vehicles entered Ukraine's second-largest city Kharkiv with reports of fighting taking place and residents being warned to stay in shelters.
Russian President Vladimir Putin put his country's nuclear deterrence forces on high alert Sunday amid a growing global backlash against the invasion. Ukraine's Defense Ministry said representatives for Ukraine and Russia have agreed to meet on the Ukraine-Belarus border «with no preconditions.»
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude future rose more than 4%to around $95.60 per barrel on Sunday. The April Brent crude futures contract also rose 4% to near $102 per barrel.
Last week, President Joe Biden reacted to the attack by announcing several rounds of sanctions on Russian banks, on the country's sovereign debt and Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
The U.S., European allies and Canada agreed Saturday to remove key Russian banks from the interbank messaging system, SWIFT.
«Some Russian banks being removed from SWIFT (energy transactions exempt) and the freezing of the Russian central bank's access to its foreign currency reserves held in the West clearly increases economic tail risk,» said Dennis DeBusschere of 22V Research.
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