The Paris Stock Exchange is expected to open sharply lower on Monday, following the new sanctions imposed on Russia which raise fears of a spike in energy prices.
The futures contract for the star CAC 40 index fell by 2.48% around forty minutes before the opening of the session. The Parisian market was heavily heckled at the end of last week following the start of the Russian invasion in Ukraine, losing nearly 4% on Thursday before recovering 3.5% the next day, bringing its weekly losses to 2.56%.
“There will be a significant amount of pent-up stress and uncertainty at the open, following a weekend of significant developments on the ground and sanctions,” Markets.com analyst Neil Wilson said.
The Russian offensive on Ukraine, which is resisting fiercely, continues Monday following the nuclear threat brandished by Vladimir Putin, to which the Europeans responded by promising to supply weapons to Kiev.
Westerners have taken heavy new financial sanctions once morest Moscow: in particular the decision to exclude many Russian banks from the Swift interbank platform, an essential cog in global finance.
These measures have been taken by the United States, France, Germany, Great Britain, Canada, Italy and the European Commission.
According to the European Union, regarding 70% of the Russian banking sector is currently affected by the sanctions.
The Russian central bank’s access to capital markets has also been restricted as the President of the European Commission wants to “paralyze” its assets. As a direct consequence, the ruble fell by more than 20% at 07:45.
Another consequence of the sanctions, oil prices jumped by more than 5%, “due to fears that companies will not be able to pay for Russian oil and gas, which might well encourage Putin to cut off supplies” , says CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.
Values to follow
Banks: following the sanctions pronounced by the West, the banks might be the most battered sector on Monday, in particular Société Générale, present in Russia via its subsidiary Rosbank.
jvi / cdc / spi