- US stocks fell on Thursday as talks between Russia and Ukraine resulted in no progress towards a ceasefire.
- Crude oil prices hit their highest level since 2008, but gains turned into losses after speculation of a deal with Iran.
- The surge in oil over the past year has been exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and adds to inflationary pressures.
US stocks fell on Thursday as talks between Russia and Ukraine showed no signs of progress towards a ceasefire agreement.
And French President Emmanuel Macron said a conversation he had with Vladimir Putin on Thursday was grim, with the view that Russia will seek to take over all of Ukraine until "the end," adding that "the worst has yet to come."
US crude oil prices surged to $116 per barrel on Thursday, representing its highest level since September 2008. But the gains were brief and turned into losses after speculation grew that Iran would reach a nuclear deal soon, allowing Tehran to add its oil supply to global markets.
The surge in oil over the past year has added to inflationary pressures that have concerned both consumers and the Federal Reserve, and the price increase has been exacerbated in the past week following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. ET close on Thursday:
- S&P 500: 4,363.49, down 0.53%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 33,794.66, down 0.29% (96.69 points)
- Nasdaq Composite: 13,537.94, down 1.56%
The rise in input prices like commodities has ultimately led to businesses raising their prices to protect their profit margins. That's evidenced by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, with nine of its companies raising prices over the past year.
The collapse in speculative SPAC stocks over the past year has now led to a shareholder lawsuit against billionaire's Chamath Palihapitiya and Richard Branson. The lawsuit alleges Virgin Galactic, which was brought public via a SPAC by the two investors, covered up flaws in its spaceships while Branson and Palihapitiya dumped shares.
In fact, some SPAC IPOs that went public in the past two years have proven to badly miss their early financial projections. Virgin Galactic's expectation to generate $210 million in revenue in 2021 turned out to be a dud, with the company only generating about $3 million in revenue.
The London Stock Exchange has suspended trading in Russian stocks that have fallen 99% amid the invasion of Ukraine. Russia's largest bank, Sberbank, traded for just one penny on Wednesday. The move comes as Russia closes its stock market for the fourth day in a row.
Meanwhile, market index providers MSCI and FTSE Russell said Russian stocks are "uninvestable" and they will be removed from all of their emerging market indices, which will likely lead to an exodus from fund managers.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 1.76% to $108.65 per barrel. Brent crude, oil's international benchmark, fell 1.59% to $111.13.
Gold rose as much as 1.05% to $1,942.50 per ounce. The yield on the 10-year Treasury dipped 2 basis points to 1.85%.
Bitcoin fell 3.53% to $41,917.
