Closing post
With Brent crude still sharply lower tonight at around $100/barrel, and US crude below $97, it’s time to wrap up.
Here are today’s main stories.
First, oil has tumbled on hopes of progress in the Russia-Ukraine ceasefire talks, and in the Iran nuclear deal negotiations. Worries that China’s economic recovery will be derailed by the latest Covid outbreak also hit energy, and rattled markets in Asia again.
Opec warned that the Ukraine war could hit demand for oil, as well as raising economic uncertainty and dampening investment.
Petrol and diesel prices hit record highs again yesterday....but the drop in crude prices could push prices at the pumps down soon.
The EU and UK have both imposed fresh sanctions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with imports into Britain such as vodka incurring an extra 35% tariff.
- UK hits Russian goods with new tariffs and bans luxury exports
- German recession looms after record slump in investor morale
The UK’s cost of living squeeze has tightened, with regular pay falling behind inflation at the fastest rate since 2014:
And also...
Goodnight. GW
Updated
European market close: Oil tumble lifts shares off lows
European stock markets have rebounded from their morning lows, cheered by the drop in the oil price.
In London, the FTSE 100 index has closed 18 points lower at 7175, down 0.25% today. Worries about China’s Covid outbreaks hit mining companies, and Asia-Pacific focused Standard Chartered and Prudential.
Plumbing group Ferguson lost 6%, despite reporting a near-32% jump in adjusted sales this morning, after it cuationed that “first half tailwinds” on gross profit margins will probably ease off.
Germany’s DAX lost just 0.1%, while France’s CAC dipped 0.25% -- both recovering from 2% falls this morning.
Michael Hewson of CMC Markets sums up the day:
European markets initially fell back sharply today, taking their cues from a big sell-off in Asia that appeared to be prompted by concerns that China might open itself up to US sanctions if it acquiesced to reported Russian requests for military aid in its war with Ukraine.
Economic concerns over increasing Covid lockdowns have also served to act as a drag.
As the day progressed, we’ve seen a modest stabilisation, with markets pulling off their lows as lower oil prices, and a slightly softer than expected core US PPI number pulled European equities up to finish the day with only modest losses.
📊 Fechamento da Europa:
— MyCAP Investimentos (@mycapinvest) March 15, 2022
🇪🇺 STOXX 600 -0,28%
🇬🇧 FTSE 100 -0,25%
🇮🇹 FTSE MIB 0,31%
🇪🇸 IBEX 35 0,02%
🇵🇹 PSI 20 -0,16%
🇫🇷 CAC 40 -0,23%
🇩🇪 DAX -0,09%
