U.S. stocks pared back losses from the depths of a selloff Thursday as U.S President Joe Biden announced additional sanctions on Russian banks and said the U.S. would release more strategic oil as conditions warrant.
The S&P 500 was little changed while the Dow Jones Industrial Average remained 0.8% lower in correction territory and the Nasdaq 100 gained 1.9% as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine cast a pall over global markets. Crude oil pared gains and the Stoxx Europe 600 fell 3.3%.
Putin said Russia doesn’t plan to “occupy” its neighbor after military forces entered, accompanied by missile and artillery fire, but that action was necessary after the U.S. and its allies crossed Russia’s “red line” by expanding the NATO alliance. The European Union, U.S. and U.K. have promised harsher sanctions on the Russia’s economy and financial sector. Meanwhile, the government in Kyiv declared martial law and called on citizens to take up arms.
“Russia invading Ukraine has added to an already tense year, with investors selling first and asking questions later,” Ryan Detrick, LPL Financial chief market strategist, said. “But it is important to know that past major geopolitical events were usually short-term market issues, especially if the economy was on solid footing.”
