- Today, investors weighed the economic dangers posed by the Federal Reserve's monetary policy tightening and Russia's war in Ukraine. US equities futures and European markets failed to gain traction.
- The Stoxx Europe 600 index varied before moving up, with the technology and real estate sectors leading the way. Natural-gas prices plummeted as the United States and the European Union announced an accord to wean European countries off Russian supply, causing energy companies to underperform.
- Futures on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 were little changed. Treasury rates rose slightly, but they were still on track for one of their biggest quarterly losses since the early 1970s. The value of a dollar index fell. Oil slid as European Union leaders decided not to take any new action to curb Russian crude imports.
- Investors are still grappling with the fallout from Russia's invasion and isolation, most notably rising raw-material costs, which have fueled forecasts of higher inflation and more aggressive Fed rate rises. The yield curve in the United States is flattening or inverting in important areas. This has sparked debate over whether the bond market is signaling an impending economic slowdown or perhaps a recession.
- China’s President Xi in a phone call with UK's Prime Minister Johnson: China is willing to play a constructive role to encourage Ukraine & Russia to have peace talks.
- The Kremlin: The Russian military will make recommendations to Putin on how to best respond to NATO's strengthening of its eastern flank.
- President Biden of the United States stated: We are working together to reduce Europe's reliance on Russian energy.
- German Economy Minister Habeck: We have reduced Russian oil imports to 25% from 35%, and Russian gas down to 40% from 55%.
- The United States and the European Union have reached an agreement on energy supply to cut dependence on Russia.
