U.S. stocks fell Thursday, as investors dealt with renewed fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine as the U.S. and its allies accused Moscow of continuing to build up troop levels.
Markets were whipsawed by Ukraine-Russia headlines, with NATO accusing Moscow of misleading the world over troop withdrawals, saying that country had instead moved in about 7,000 additional soldiers, though Russia still claimed it was withdrawing troops.
Also, Russian-backed separatists in Ukraine have accused government forces of opening fire on them. The U.S. and its allies have accused Russia of planning to use false reports of attacks on separatists as a pretext for an invasion. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Russia has filed a report with the United Nations alleging that Ukraine’s military has committed “crimes” against residents of the eastern Donbas region.
“This is likely to be the bigger concern for NATO and the U.S., if separatist forces try and goad Ukrainian forces into a counter-response, thus creating an excuse for a Russian incursion, and for all hell to break loose,” said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, in a note.
“The bigger risk for markets is that President Putin simply leaves the bulk of his forces on the border and simply plays a game of cat and mouse for the next few weeks and months,” Hewson said.
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