Panic in markets around the world
On Monday, the Moscow Stock Exchange experienced another day of declines, a trend similar to what is occurring in other markets, particularly in the United States. The administration of President Donald Trump first made announcements that raised concerns among investors and entrepreneurs, leading to stock exchange declines. Next, the tariffs were imposed on several countries and the entire European Union. Although tariffs were not applied to Russia and Belarus, this did not prevent turbulence in the Russian financial markets.
Yesterday, the Russian stock exchange index fell by 3.91 percent, marking the 14th consecutive day of downfalls on the Moscow Stock Exchange.
Among the biggest losers is the En+ Group, owned by Oleg Deripaska, a Russian aluminum oligarch under Western sanctions. Shares of the Russian technology giant fell by 8.28 percent, while the state-owned transportation corporation Sovcomflot declined by 8.22 percent.
Other large Russian companies, including the multi-industry group Sistiema, construction group PIK, aviation group Samoliot, and coal group Mechel, experienced a decline in their share prices of over 7 percent.
,,- The Russian stock exchanges are falling, but I don't see any crazy drama or big turnaround here - said Yevgeny Kogan, an investment banker and Professor at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, as quoted by the emigrant portal The Moscow Times.
The Russian economy is mainly dependent on the prices of raw materials. Due to protectionist statements and actions taken by Donald Trump, the cost of Russian Urals oil dropped from 60 USD per barrel just a few days ago to 52.76 USD on Friday.
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov described the market's reaction to Trump's decisions as "extreme, feverish, intense, and emotionally overblown." He assured that "our economic authorities are closely monitoring the situation" and will take all necessary measures to "minimize the impact of this global economic storm on our economy."
The price of the Ruble is currently at approximately the same level (around 84 Rubles to a USD and 92 to a Euro).
Investors and world leaders anxiously awaited yesterday's New York's Wall Street session. This week started similarly to recent days, with apparent declines in European and Asian stock exchanges. On Monday, major European markets experienced significant sell-offs. The DAX index in Frankfurt initially dropped by more than 10 percent compared to Friday's closing value. While the trend improved slightly over time, it decreased by approximately 7 percent.
The new week started similarly in other cities: the CAC in Paris fell by 6%, the London FTSE250 - by 5%, and the Swiss SMI recorded drops of around 7%.
The significant sell-off that began Monday in European trading is part of a continuing trend observed on Asian stock exchanges. On that day, the Japanese Nikkei closed at just over 31,136 points, marking a decline of 7.83 percent compared to its closing value on Friday. However, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange saw the most substantial losses, where the index fell by 13.22 percent, reaching its lowest level since 1997.
The Warsaw Stock Exchange was suspended in the afternoon but resumed operations an hour later. Following the resumption, additional declines were noted. Before the suspension, the Warsaw Stock Exchange Index had fallen by approximately 2 percent, and after it reopened at 4:15 p.m., it declined another 0.5 percent. Although the Warsaw Stock Exchange situation is challenging, it is relatively better than other exchanges.
Commenting on the global stock exchange events, US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that thanks to the tariffs, the US economy is "growing stronger," he described the market decline as "medicine given to the patient."
MaH/ belsat.eu according to themoscowtimes.com, PAP
Translated by PEV
