Geopolitical worries weigh on European stocks

Chris Beauchamp IG

Stock indices tumbled thanks to signs of fresh tensions between Russia and the West, and natural gas prices made fresh gains, says Chris Beauchamp, Chief Market Analyst at online trading platform IG.

Fear index surges on geopolitical tensions

Today’s surge in the aptly nicknamed ‘Fear Index’ comes thanks to geopolitical tensions. Risk assets like stocks are not likely to enjoy a good day when the word ‘nuclear’ is being bandied around, and today was no exception. The Ukrainian use of US missiles on targets inside Russia caught European markets particularly hard, taking the already hard-hit CAC40 to a new three and a half month low. In London the FTSE 100 gave back its morning gains but has avoided any major losses.

Natural Gas makes gains

Natural gas prices were in vogue today thanks to the signs of further tensions between Russia and the West. Suggestions of sabotage in the disruption of a Baltic undersea cable reinforced the sense of a growing crisis, one that will hit European households particularly hard.

Author

Chris Beauchamp

EUR/USD accelerates losses, focus is on 1.1800

EUR/USD’s selling pressure is gathering pace now, opening the door to a potential test of the key 1.1800 region sooner rather than later. The pair’s pullback comes on the back of marked gains in the US Dollar following US data releases and the publication of the FOMC Minutes later in the day.

GBP/USD turns negative near 1.3540

GBP/USD reverses its initial upside momentum and is now adding to previous declines, revisiting at the same time the 1.3540 region on Wednesday. Cable’s downtick comes on the back of decent gains in the Greenback and easing UK inflation figures, which seem to have reinforced the case for a BoE rate cut in March.

Gold picks pace, flirts with $5,000

Gold is back on the front foot on Wednesday, shaking off part of the early week softness and pushing higher towards the key $5,000 mark per troy ounce. The move comes ahead of the FOMC Minutes and is unfolding despite an intense rebound in the US Dollar.

Fed Minutes to shed light on January hold decision amid hawkish rate outlook

The Minutes of the Fed’s January 27-28 monetary policy meeting will be published today. Details of discussions on the decision to leave the policy rate unchanged will be scrutinized by investors.

Mixed UK inflation data no gamechanger for the Bank of England

Food inflation plunged in January, but service sector price pressure is proving stickier. We continue to expect Bank of England rate cuts in March and June. The latest UK inflation read is a mixed bag for the Bank of England, but we doubt it drastically changes the odds of a March rate cut.

Sui extends sideways action ahead of Grayscale’s GSUI ETF launch

Sui is extending its downtrend for the second consecutive day, trading at 0.95 at the time of writing on Wednesday. The Layer-1 token is down over 16% in February and approximately 34% from the start of the year, aligning with the overall bearish sentiment across the crypto market.