US stocks tumble again as oil prices reach multi-year highs

Weather - Berlin 11°C

US stocks tumble again as oil prices reach multi-year highs

POLITICS 19.01.2022

US stocks tumble again as oil prices reach multi-year highs

Wall Street stocks tumbled again Wednesday following a volatile session as markets grapple with the prospect of higher interest rates, while oil prices scaled new multi-year highs.

Change text size:

After an up day in European equity markets, Wall Street stocks began the session on positive ground following good results from Procter & Gamble and other companies.

But stocks faltered in the afternoon, falling especially hard in the last hour of trading on weakening sentiment.

The early gains "looked like a good set-up for an equity rebound, but unfortunately, that didn't happen," Briefing.com said. "The inability to rebound from sizable losses deterred risk sentiment, fueling a belief that more downside was ahead."

All three major indices dropped one percent or more in the session, pushing the Nasdaq into a correction -- a decline of greater than 10 percent from its most recent peak.

Stocks have been under pressure for most of 2022 so far as the Federal Reserve has signaled a significant pivot in monetary policy with an accelerated phase-out of stimulus and interest rate cuts.

Investors were spooked Tuesday as the yield on the 10-year Treasury note jumped above 1.85 percent, amid expectations the Fed could hike interest rates as many as four times this year. The rate, a proxy for the interest rate outlook, remained near that level on Wednesday.

World oil prices zoomed to more seven-year peaks on renewed unrest in the crude-rich Middle East, and on expectations of resurgent post-pandemic demand.

The International Energy Agency lifted its forecast for 2022 oil consumption, now seen at 99.7 million barrels per day, above the pre-Covid level.

"If demand continues to grow strongly or supply disappoints, the low level of stocks and shrinking spare capacity mean that oil markets could be in for another volatile year in 2022," the IEA said.

- Key figures around 2125 GMT -

New York - Dow: DOWN 1.0 percent at 35,028.65 (close)

New York - S&P 500: DOWN 1.0 percent at 4,532.76 (close)

New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 1.2 percent at 14,340.26 (close)

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 7,589.66 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.2 percent at 15,809.72 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.6 percent at 7,172.98 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.3 percent at 4,268.28 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.8 percent at 27,467.23 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.1 percent at 24,127.85 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 3,558.18 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1351 from $1.1325 late Tuesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3610 from $1.3596

Euro/pound: UP at 83.31 pence from 83.30 pence

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 114.33 yen from 114.61 yen

Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.1 percent at $88.44 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.8 percent at $86.96 per barrel

burs-jmb/cs

(M.Dylatov--DTZ)

Featured

Russia a terrorist state threatening world peace!

n recent years, through its targeted and murderous warfare against Ukraine, the systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure and mass deportations, the Russian Federation has become synonymous with anti-social, criminal state terrorism. This assessment is shared by many international observers, politicians and religious communities.In this context, the Ukrainian churches speak of a “terrorist state” because, during the winter of 2025/2026, the Russian military bombed energy facilities and residential areas at temperatures of minus twenty degrees in order to deprive millions of people of electricity, water and heating. Civilians in cities such as Kyiv, Odessa and Kharkiv are being terrorised by dozens of missiles and hundreds of unmanned aerial vehicles, whilst Russia, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, should in fact be ensuring peace.The blame for this horror lies with the mass murderer and war criminal Vladimir Putin (73), a ruthless dictator who, together with his criminal henchmen, is systematically re-educating an entire nation and reducing its people to murderous zombies!Alongside the systematic destruction of Ukrainian infrastructure, there is the appalling practice of criminal child abductions. Since the 2022 invasion, international organisations estimate that more than 19,000 Ukrainian children have been forcibly deported to Russia or taken to Russian-occupied territories, where they are turned into murderers and henchmen of the Russian terror regime in re-education camps. In this context, the children are being ‘Russified’; their names, language and homeland are being torn from them – an act that human rights lawyers classify as genocide. The United States is debating a bill in Congress that would officially designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism if these children are not returned. Senators describe the abduction campaign as one of the greatest crimes of our time and demand that there must be diplomatic and economic consequences. Outrage is also growing at European level, though the German government in particular is standing idly by, driven by the delusional madness of many sympathisers and mindless Putin apologists who have infiltrated German politics like a cancer.The European Parliament has already recognised Russia as a state that employs terrorist means and is calling for the isolation of the Kremlin. Religious leaders of various denominations condemn the attacks on energy facilities as ‘state terrorism’. They emphasise that the Russian leadership and those citizens who support the acts of war are morally complicit in crimes against humanity. The Ukrainian President points out that the targeted missile and drone strikes on power grids are intended to bring about a catastrophic winter. More than half of Ukraine’s gas infrastructure has been damaged; people are dying or losing their homes. The international community is responding with increasing pressure. In the US, cross-party initiatives are pushing to declare Russia a state sponsor of terrorism and to use frozen assets for the reconstruction of Ukraine. In Europe, MEPs are calling for the extension of the Magnitsky sanctions regime against Russian officials and the confiscation of Russian assets. Human rights organisations denounce the abductions of children, attacks on hospitals, schools and power stations, and the deportation of civilians as violations of all norms of international humanitarian law. Public opinion is predominantly characterised by horror and anger. Many commentators are calling for drastic sanctions, military support for Ukraine and the complete diplomatic isolation of Russia. However, there are also voices warning against escalation and calling for an end to hostilities through negotiations. Some fear that classifying Russia as a terrorist state could jeopardise peace negotiations, whilst others counter that there can be no security without clear consequences. Attention is also drawn to double standards, as other states have also waged wars without being classified as terrorist states. Nevertheless, the prevailing consensus is that the actions of the Russian leadership demonstrate an unprecedented level of brutality and pose a threat to world peace.

Deutsche Tageszeitung - US stocks tumble again as oil prices reach multi-year highs

US stocks tumble again as oil prices reach multi-year highs

Russia a terrorist state threatening world peace!

France's Sarkozy says 'innocent' at trial over Libya funding

Australian soldier charged with war crimes in Afghanistan

Croatia finally landmine-free 30 years after war, but wounds remain