Friends
It was already a somewhat gloomy day on Wall Street. Stocks had tried to show a little resilience after yesterday’s inflation fear induced drubbing, but the hangover was palpable. Sentiment was dreary, the bears were dominating business television, and by early afternoon stocks had begun to sink into negative territory once again. Then a report that the U. S. Government believed that a Russian attack on Ukraine was imminent, and a subsequent press conference confirming the report, sent an already nervous and tentative stock market tumbling lower. Bond yields that were dancing above the 2% mark on the 10-year Treasury Note quickly retreated it, energy prices moved higher, and it was a risk off scramble. Stocks were likely heading lower into the close today regardless of the global tensions, but this afternoon’s headlines simply put the icing on the cake.
By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial was down 503 points to finish the day at 34,738. The S&P 500 was down 85 points to close at 4,418. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 394 points to close at 13,791. Gold was up $26 to trade at $1,863, while oil was up $3.76 to trade at $93.64 per barrel WTI.
What will happen over the weekend is anyone’s guess. Will Russia invade Ukraine? What are the consequences if they do and how does it affect investors? Energy prices have already been affected in anticipation of Russian military action. There are many questions to be answered and only time will tell. Let’s hope cooler heads prevail. Stay tuned.
Have a nice weekend everyone.
