The winds of war that blow stronger and stronger overwhelm the Tokyo stock exchange: the Nikkei 225 index lost 2.23% to 27,079.59 points.
Hong Kong -1.43% struggling with the fifth wave of Covid infections; Shanghai -1.19%, Seoul -1.60%, while the Sydney stock exchange is positive with an increase of 0.37%.
Fears are growing about a possible invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
In the last few hours, US President Joe Biden, according to reports from the White House, told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that the United States, together with its allies, “will respond quickly and decisively” to an aggression by Vladimir’s Russia. Putin.
“No one should be surprised if Russia creates an accident to justify the military action it had always planned”, US Secretary of State Blinken also remarked, recalling that there is the possibility that Putin and his people are using a “false pretext” for invade Ukraine.
Watch out for the reaction of oil prices, which fly to the record in more than seven years, discounting fears about the real possibility that, in the event of war, the United States and Europe will launch heavy sanctions against Russia, the top oil producer.
Brent futures advanced more than 1 percentage point to $ 95.56 a barrel, after testing $ 96.16, a record since October 2014. The WTI contract traded in New York rose to an intraday record of $ 94.94. highest value since September 2014.