European shares fluctuated at the opening on Wednesday as oil prices surged on fears of supply disruption as sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine started to hit home.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was 0.7% lower in early deals as losses continued for a third straight day. The benchmark is down 9% so far this year. German and French bourses were lower, while the UK’s FTSE 100 bucked the trend and US futures were higher.
Russian forces continued to batter Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, and were set to encircle the capital Kyiv. A growing number of companies are cutting ties with an increasingly isolated Moscow, with Airbus, Ford, Google, and, belatedly, Apple joining the list.
Crude oil prices surged by almost 7%, with Brent crude soaring past $110 per barrel for the first time in eight years. U.S. crude futures also saw big gains, rising around 6.6% to $110.29 per barrel.
The rise comes despite the International Energy Agency saying it would release 60 million barrels of oil from global reserves to ease supply constraints.
In equity news, Ericsson slumped 11.5% after the Swedish telecom gear maker said it had been informed that disclosures it made to the US Department of Justice about an internal investigation into conduct in Iraq were insufficient.
British insurer Hiscox gained more than 7% in early trade to lead the Stoxx 600 after swinging to a full-year pre-tax profit for 2021 and issuing a positive outlook.
Finland’s Nokian Tyres continued its slide, down another 15%, as investors continued to fret about its Russian exposure.
Just Eat Takeaway gained more than 7% as annual revenues jumped by more than a third.
UK house builder Persimmon was higher as the company issued an upbeat set of results and said it remained confident for the current year, despite rising interest rates, after strong demand boosted annual sales.
