Dow tumbles as Russia threatens the West

By CNN Business

Updated 8:16 a.m. ET, March 1, 2022
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11:14 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

Citigroup has $5.4 billion in exposure to Russia

From CNN Business' Paul R. La Monica

A Citibank AO branch in Moscow, Russia, on Thursday, Feb. 24.
A Citibank AO branch in Moscow, Russia, on Thursday, Feb. 24. (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg/Getty Images)

Citigroup is looking to pare back its business in Russia. But the banking giant still has a significant presence there...and that is hurting the company and its investors.

Shares of Citi (C) fell 4% Monday morning after the company disclosed in its annual report filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it had $5.4 billion "in Russia credit and other exposures" as of the end of 2021. That's down from $5.5 billion at the end of the third quarter but still up slightly from 2020 year-end levels.

Citi said in the filing that it has a total of $8.2 billion in third-party exposure to Russia when cash and placements with the Bank of Russia and other financial institutions and reverse repurchase agreements with various counterparties are also included.

Citi noted in the filing that it is "pursuing the exit" of its global consumer banking business in Russia but it still expects to have a presence in Russia through its institutional clients group for businesses.

But Citi acknowledged in the annual report how uncertain conditions are regarding Russia.

Citi’s ability to engage in activity with certain consumer and institutional businesses in Russia and Ukraine or involving certain Russian or Ukrainian businesses and customers is dependent in part upon whether such engagement is restricted under any current or expected U.S., EU and other countries or U.K. sanctions and laws," the bank said.

Citi added that "sanctions and export controls, as well as any actions by Russia, could adversely affect Citi’s business activities and customers in and from Russia and Ukraine" and that the bank "will mitigate its exposures and risks as appropriate."

10:43 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

$115 oil is coming very soon, Goldman Sachs warns

From CNN Business' Matt Egan

A person pumps gas in Washington, DC, on February 23.
A person pumps gas in Washington, DC, on February 23. (Stefani Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images)

Oil prices are likely to spike to $115 a barrel in the coming weeks and other major commodities like wheat, palladium and European natural gas will rise sharply in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Goldman Sachs said Sunday evening.

The Goldman Sachs call specifically cited new sanctions levied by the West on Russia in recent days aimed at punishing Moscow for the war.

“The hurdles that these sanctions will create for financial payments are likely to exacerbate the recent Russian commodity supply shock, already visible as Western and Chinese traders halting shipments,” Goldman Sachs economists wrote. “Barring a breakthrough in peace negotiations, we believe this leaves commodity prices having to rally sharply as we see demand destruction now the only significant remaining balancing mechanism.”

Oil prices have soared to seven-year highs in recent days due to concerns about a disruption in supply from Russia, the world’s No. 2 producer of oil.

Goldman Sachs is now raising its one-month Brent price forecast to $115 a barrel, compared with $95 previously. Brent crude, the world benchmark, spiked to nearly $106 a barrel last week before cooling off a bit. In recent trading on Monday, Brent was up 2.7% to $100.59 a barrel. 

10:18 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

Russian stocks and ETFs in the US plunge following tougher sanctions

From CNN Business' Paul R. La Monica

A Lukoil plant in the region of Volgograd, Russia, in October 2021. 
A Lukoil plant in the region of Volgograd, Russia, in October 2021.  (Artem Krasnov/Kommersant/Sipa USA/AP)

The stock market in Moscow is closed Monday, but US-listed Russian companies and Russian exchange-traded funds are plunging.

The declines come after the United States and Europe imposed even tougher sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.

The Franklin FTSE Russia (FLRU) ETF was down nearly 15% in early trading Monday. The iShares MSCI Russia (ERUS) ETF fell 20%. And the VanEck Vectors Russia (RSX) ETF crashed by more than 25%.

Russian energy companies Gazprom (OGZPY) and Lukoil (LUKOY) and top financial firm Sberbank (SBRCY) are among the top holdings in all three funds. The US-listed shares of the two oil stocks each were down more than 40% Monday while Sberbank fell a staggering 70%.

Meanwhile, the Russian ruble is also plummeting.

10:14 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

Stocks fall as investors keep wary eye on Russia and Ukraine

From CNN Business' Paul R. La Monica

The New York Stock Exchange at Wall Street on February 24.
The New York Stock Exchange at Wall Street on February 24. (Angela Weiss/AFP/Getty Images)

US stocks were broadly lower Monday morning. Wall Street is worried about the impact of more economic sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, and the fact that Russia has put nuclear weapons forces and other deterrents on high alert.

Defense stocks were among the few standouts, rallying after Germany announced plans to increase its military spending.

8:07 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

Defense stocks set to pop on continued Russia worries

From CNN Business' Paul R. La Monica

Stocks are set to fall at the opening bell Monday as investors grapple with what the latest headlines about Russia and Ukraine mean for the global economy. But defense stocks look ready to rally.

Worries about Russian president Vladimir Putin's decision over the weekend to put deterrence forces, which include Russia's stockpile of nuclear weapons, on high alert have investors betting on nations around the world ramping up military spending. Germany announced plans over the weekend to allocate 100 billion euros to a special fund for more defense spending.

Shares of defense contractors Northrop Grumman (NOC), Raytheon (RTX), General Dynamics (GD) and Lockheed Martin (LMT) were all up between 3% and 6% in premarket trading Monday. That will likely make them among the best market performers.

These and other defense stocks and defense sector exchange-traded funds surged Thursday following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and they rallied again Friday.

7:33 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

Russia faces financial meltdown as sanctions slam its economy

From CNN Business' Mark Thompson

A branch of Citibank in Moscow on February 24.
A branch of Citibank in Moscow on February 24. (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg/Getty Images)

President Vladimir Putin was due to a hold crisis talks with his top economic advisers after the ruble crashed to a record low against the US dollar, the central bank more than doubled interest rates, and the Moscow stock exchange was shuttered for the day.

The European subsidiary of Russia's biggest bank was on the brink of collapse as savers rushed to withdraw their deposits. And economists warned that the Russian economy could shrink by 5%.

The collapse in the currency prompted the Russian central back to implement emergency measures on Monday, including a huge hike in interest rates to 20% from 9.5%.

Read more

6:44 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

Global stocks fall and oil surges as West pours on Russian sanctions

From CNN Business' Laura He

The German share price index DAX graph is pictured at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, on February 28. 
The German share price index DAX graph is pictured at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, on February 28.  Reuters

European markets opened lower, as the West continued to impose fresh sanctions on Russia. In early trade the United Kingdom's FTSE 100 fell 1%, the German DAX 30 dropped 2% and France's CAC 40 was 2% lower.

Asian markets ended the day on a mixed note. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost as much as 1.6%, before closing down 0.2%. Japan's Nikkei 225 and Korea's Kospi erased earlier losses and were up 0.2% and 0.8%, respectively. China's Shanghai Composite was up 0.3%.

Global markets had been turbulent last week after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an invasion of Ukraine, and the pain has spread beyond stocks.

The Russian ruble plummeted as much as 40% Monday against the US dollar, after Western countries announced new sanctions against Russia, including expelling certain Russian banks from SWIFT, the high-security network that connects thousands of financial institutions around the world.

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6:24 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

Russia shutters its stock market as the ruble crashes

From CNN Business' Mark Thompson

Russia's currency crashed to a record low against the US dollar Monday as the country's financial system reeled from crushing sanctions imposed by Western countries in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

The ruble lost more than 30% of its value to trade at 109 to the dollar at 2.30 a.m. ET after earlier plummeting as much as 40%. The start of trading on the Russian stock market was delayedand then canceled entirely, according to a statement from the country's central bank.

The latest barrage of sanctions came Saturday, when the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and Canada said they would expel some Russian banks from SWIFT, a global financial messaging service, and "paralyze" the assets of Russia's central bank.

President Vladimir Putin's government has spent the last eight years preparing Russia for tough sanctions by building up a war chest of $630 billion in foreign currency reserves, but his "fortress" economy is now under unprecedented assault and at least some of that financial firepower is now frozen.

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6:21 a.m. ET, February 28, 2022

Dow futures tumble

From CNN Business' David Goldman

Russia continued to bear down on Ukraine's largest cities over the weekend, but Russian fighters bore stiff resistance from Ukrainians. Peace talks are set to take place between delegates of the two nations Monday on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border.

Still, President Vladimir Putin ordered his country's deterrence forces — including nuclear arms — be placed on high alert. That unnerved investors, concerned that the war could spill over to other countries outside of Ukraine.

Putin's threat came after the White House and several EU nations announced the expulsion of certain Russian banks from the SWIFT banking system Saturday evening. Removing some Russian banks from SWIFT could effectively disconnect them from the international financial system, hindering their ability to do global business.

But that action could hurt European countries' ability to buy Russian energy. Senior Russian lawmakers have said that shipments of oil, gas and metals to Europe would stop if the country's financial system is removed from SWIFT. Russia remains a key exporter of oil and natural gas for much of Europe, and immediate alternatives that could blunt rising energy prices from a reduction of Russian exports aren't obvious.

Some Western banks also have assets tied up in Russia, and cutting Russian banks off from SWIFT could sting.

Dow futures were down 400 points or 1.1%. S&P 500 futures fell 1.3%. Nasdaq futures were 1.3% lower.

The disruption to oil in particular is concerning to investors. Oil prices surged. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 4% to $101.80 a barrel. US crude rose 4.8% to $96 a barrel.