Asian stock markets rebounded Wednesday after Wall Street slid on anxiety over President Vladimir Putin’s authorization to send Russian soldiers into eastern Ukraine.
“Current U.S. sanctions on Russia are less-than-feared by the market,” said Anderson Alves of ActivTrades in a report. Alves noted American officials have more “acute options” including reducing Russia’s access to the SWIFT system for global bank transactions. The Kospi in Seoul advanced 0.5 per cent to 2,720.20 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 added 0.5 per cent to 7,196.40.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 fell to 4,304.76. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.4 per cent to 33,596.61. The Nasdaq composite lost 1.2 per cent to 13,381.52. European gas prices jumped after Germany withdrew a key document needed for certification of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia.