U.S. Stocks Plunge On Russian Invasion Of Ukraine; Oil Soars Near $100 A Barrel

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine roiled global financial markets, sending U.S. stocks to the lowest levels in more than nine months.

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The Nasdaq composite slid 1.5% after paring some losses. With today’s plunge, the Nasdaq’s decline from its Nov. 22 peak is 21%. That exceeds the 20% drop that is typically considered a bear market.

The S&P 500 was down 1.7%. At Thursday’s low, the index was less than 15% below its prior high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.3%, leaving its overall decline since its peak on Jan. 4 at about 12%.

U.S. stocks were broadly lower, with decliners over advancers by more than 5-to-1 on the Nasdaq and by more than 6-to-1 on the NYSE. Volume rose sharply on the NYSE and Nasdaq compared with the same time on Wednesday.

Investor Fear, Oil Prices Surge

The Cboe Volatilty Index, a measure of investor fear, vaulted 18% to the highest since Jan. 24.

The price of U.S. crude oil jumped nearly 8% to $99.47 a barrel, the highest since July 2014. Europe’s North Sea benchmark Brent crude briefly topped $105 per barrel. Natural gas price also spiked.

Russian forces staged military attacks on multiple Ukrainian cities, including the capital of Kyiv, news reports and social media posts said. Russian President Vladimir Putin early Thursday announced a military operation designed to bring down the government of Ukraine and demilitarizing the country.

Western leaders condemned Russia and promised further sanctions. Europe gets much of its energy from Russia.

In afternoon trading in Europe, the German DAX plummeted 4.7% while the Paris CAC 40 fell 4.1% and the London FTSE 100 stumbled 3.2%. In Asia, the Tokyo Nikkei 225 fell 1.8%, the Shanghai Composite lost 1.7% and the Hong Kong Hang Seng fell 3.2%. The German and Paris indexes are going through their worst weeks since October 2020, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell 6 basis points to 1.92%.

U.S. Stock Sectors Mostly Lower; Energy Up

All S&P sector ETFs fell, from 0.6% to as much as 3.3%. But Energy Select Sector SPDR rose 0.6% in response to the surge in oil prices. The ETF has been finding support at its 21-day exponential moving average. Consumer discretionary, financial and technology sectors tumbled more than 3%.

VanEck Russia ETF (RSX), which had fallen more than 17% this week, was halted for trading. Freedom Holding (FRHC), a Kazakhstan-based company that provides financial services in Russia, Ukraine and other countries, skidded more than 8% to a June 2021 low.

Among major U.S. stocks, Apple (AAPL) fell to its 200-day moving average, but appears to be finding support. Alphabet (GOOGL) appears to be holding at around the 2,500 level and Nvidia (NVDA) around the 209 level.

Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY) slid more than 3% to the lowest since July 2020. Apart from some oil and mining stocks, the IBD 50 was nearly entirely lower. A few stocks triggered sell signals.

Robert Half International (RHI) fell more than 7% below its 120.93 buy point, causing a sell signal.

Shipping company Danaos (DAC) fell 3.5% and erased a 15% gain from its 89.51 buy point, which is a round-trip sell signal. Industry peer Global Ship Lease (GSL) gapped down and is 10% below its 26.61 buy point, another sell signal.

Financials were among the hardest hit. American Express (AXP) gapped down and is about 5% below the 189.13 buy point from the Feb. 8 breakout. East West Bancorp (EWBC) and Raymond James Financial (RJF) slid nearly 5% in active trading.

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