Stocks open higher, but oil remains above $100

Asian stock markets began to recover this Friday (25), in line with the high closing of Wall Street after the blow suffered with the beginning of the Russian military onslaught in Ukraine.

The pan-European index also rallied after falling to its lowest level since May 2021 in the previous session. The pound and euro are also up.

The attack caused instability in markets, with sharp drops in Asian and European stock markets, sending the price of Brent oil above US$100 for the first time since 2014 and causing the ruble to plummet against the US dollar.

However, in line with the New York Stock Exchange – which opened on heavy losses but closed in the green after the announcement of US sanctions against Russia – markets started Friday higher.

The indexes for Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul, Singapore and Wellington grew by more than 1%. Although less buoyant, the Hong Kong, Sydney, Jakarta and Taipei stock exchanges also recorded gains.

The price of a barrel of Brent oil, however, remains above $100 and analysts say the conflict could keep its price at a high level for months.

The ruble eased much of its losses against the dollar, which was rescued by the Russian central bank’s first monetary intervention since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea.

The market expects more action from the Russian central bank, which has to deal with inflationary risks. The weakening ruble following the invasion of Ukraine is expected to hurt living standards in Russia and spur inflation, which is already close to 9%.