Closing summary
Natural gas prices jumped as much as 20% in Europe as Russia’s energy company Gazprom cut gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, which refused to pay for gas in roubles.
Four European gas buyers have paid for deliveries in roubles, caving in to Vladimir Putin’s demand, Bloomberg News is reporting, citing a person close to Gazprom. Ten European companies have already opened accounts at Gazprombank, enabling them to make payments in the Russian currency.
US and European shares are rising, following Tuesday’s declines across some of the major indices.
The dollar has hit a five-year high against a basket of international currencies, as investors seek out safe havens, while the euro fell to a five-year low versus the dollar of below $1.06.
Crude oil, priced in dollars, is falling, as the stronger dollar made barrels more expensive and Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, is seeking to speed up plans to wean itself off Russian oil. Brent crude and US light crude erased earlier gains and are down more than 1% at $103.80 and $100.34 a barrel respectively.
German consumer confidence hit an all-time low heading into May, according to analytics firm GfK, following a slump in sentiment in the UK last week.
UK retail sales slumped in April, according to a monthly survey from the CBI.
Our other main stories today:
Thank you for reading! We’ll be back tomorrow. – JK
The PA news agency understands that the Serious Fraud Office has raided the offices of Sanjeev Gupta’s Liberty Steel amid fraud investigations into its parent firm’s links with Greensill Capital.
The BBC’s business editor Simon Jack is tweeting:
Two sources have told the BBC that offices of Sanjeev Gupta's Liberty Steel empire have been raided by the Serious Fraud Office. The SFO is investigating suspected fraud and money laundering by Gupta Family Group Alliance (GFG), including its arrangements with Greensill Capital.
— Simon Jack (@BBCSimonJack) April 27, 2022
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— Simon Jack (@BBCSimonJack) April 27, 2022
Sources close to Liberty Steel have conceded that SFO staff attended GFG/Liberty Steel premises but insisted it did not constitute a "raid" but an in-person request for information.
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