Stocks dive, oil surges as Putin issues warning on Ukraine
Global stocks and US bond yields dived on Thursday, while the dollar, gold and oil prices rocketed higher after Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a blistering warning against Ukraine and authorised special military operations in Ukraine’s Donbass region.
Several explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, before dawn, after an initial series of sounds similar to artillery fire, a Reuters witness reported, shortly after Russia announced the military operation.
Putin called on Ukrainian soldiers to immediately lay down their weapons and go home and said the responsibility for any bloodshed will be on the conscience “of the Ukrainian regime” according to comments carried by Russian news agencies.
