Europe close: Stocks end lower after Russia restarts invasion
By Alexander Bueso
Date: Tuesday 19 Apr 2022
(Sharecast News) - European shares ended below the waterline on Tuesday, as Russia started its assault on eastern Ukraine and amid louder calls for the continent to cut its imports of Russian natural gas.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was down 0.77% to 456.28, with all major regional bourses lower alongside.
However, Germany's DAX was just 0.07% weaker to 14,153.46, having managed to recover from an earlier sharp fall.
"The economic hit from [cutting off Russian gas] will not be small, and poses a major risk to the struggling economies of the continent," said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.
"While the calls to cut off Russian supplies are understandable, it boosts the already not-insubstantial risk of a recession in the near future, reducing the limited attractiveness of Europe yet further."
At the weekend, Italian Prime Minister, Mario Draghi, said cutting Russian gas supplies could be done "in a relatively short time" and with only a "mild" the impact.
"We no longer want to depend on Russian gas, because economic dependence must not become political subjugation," Draghi told Corriere della Sera.
"To do this, we need to diversify energy sources and find new suppliers."
Russian forces launched their long-expected offensive in eastern Ukraine after massing troops and artillery there for the past fortnight.
In the US, St Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard on Monday repeated his case for increasing interest rates to 3.5% by the end of the year on Monday, saying domestic inflation was "far too high".
"The Bullard comments really encapsulate the quandary that many of the world's central banks have found themselves in," said Oanda analyst Jeffrey Halley.
In equity news, shares in French reinsurer Scor were down almost 5% after the company said it expects to book charges for claims related to the Ukraine conflict.
E-commerce group THG was 2.54% weaker after the founder of one of its leading beauty businesses resigned and brands complained of late payments, according to a report in the Sunday Times.
Alexia Inge, co-founder of Cult Beauty, which THG bought for £275m last year, emailed staff this month to say she was "exhausted to the bone" and would be leaving the company in what was the "hardest decision" of her life.
On the upside, precision instrument maker Spectris was ahead by 5% after the company sold its Omega Engineering unit to Arcline Investment Management for $525m (£403m) and unveiled a £300m share buyback.
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