Money Talks

The US and the UK have both imposed a ban on imports of Russian energy. Russian oil made up about 3% of all the crude shipments that arrived in the US last year. But for Europe it's a whole different story. Countries like Germany, Sweden and Romania depend on the country for around half of their crude imports. For Finland, Poland, Hungary and Estonia, it's closer to 70% or even 80%.

#MarketMovers #EnergyWar #EuropeGasDependency

Rising food and fuel prices are also taking a toll on other economies. Struggling to manage their finances, developing countries like Sri Lanka and Argentina are also being driven to seek aid from the IMF, despite the organisation's strict and unpopular austerity requirements. Tayyibe Aydin reports.

#GlobalInflation #FuelShortage #FoodPrices

As Ukraine faces its biggest economic and humanitarian crisis, international assistance is flowing in to help mitigate the impact of the Russian attack:

- IMF approves $1.4B emergency funds

- World Bank announces $700M in loans, grants

- Washington to provide $13.6B to Kiev

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has also announced a $2.2B 'resilience package' for Ukraine. Its president Odile Renaud Basso joined us from Paris.

#RussiaAttacksUkraine #UkraineAid #HumanitarianAssistance

As Ukrainians continue to resist Russian forces, the cost of the conflict is rising for Moscow, Kiev and the global economy. Both Ukraine and Russia are major suppliers of food, fuel and other key inputs for a myriad industries. The Economist Intelligence Unit estimates the ongoing conflict could cost the global economy at least $400B this year. Russian heavy deployment is coming at a steep cost to Moscow, with some saying it's spending around $20B a day. And the onslaught is taking a heavier toll on Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's administration says public infrastructure worth more than $100B has already been destroyed.

Andrii Dligach, the co-founder of the Centre for Economic Recovery and CEO of the business consultancy, Advanter Group. He joined us from Kiev.

In Kent in the UK, we had Douglas McWilliams, the founder and deputy chairperson of the Centre for Economics and Business Research.

#RussiaAttacksUkraine #WarCost #EconomicImpact

Fears of higher inflation are driving down investor sentiment across global equity markets on Friday. Stocks in the Asia-Pacific region fell lower, as the the Dow Jones heads for its fifth straight week of losses. Russia's attack on Ukraine has driven up international prices of oil, natural gas, food grains and dozens of other commodities. The impact is already being felt, with consumer inflation in the US soaring to a 40-year high of 7.9% in February.

Equiti Capital market analyst, David Madden joined us from London.

#InflationFears #StockMarkets #DowJones

Oil prices have plunged by as much as 12%, to settle around $108 per barrel after rising to more than $130 earlier this week. The drop came after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the United Arab Emirates and Iraq have agreed to increase oil production. Washington has been calling on major oil exporters to raise output to rein in rising prices and make up for a fall in global supplies following its ban on Russian exports of fossil fuels.

For more on the topic, we were joined by AvaTrade Chief Market Analyst, Naeem Aslam.

#RussiaAttacksUkraine #RussiaEnergyExport #GulfOilSupply

Major mainland China indices are all in the red, as rating agency Fitch says a bond default in Russia is imminent, because of the country's financial isolation following its attack on Ukraine. Meanwhile, the Russian ruble has gained some ground, after heavy losses. The currency has fallen more than 40% against the dollar since the start of the year, making it by far the worst-performing emerging market currency this year. Analysts expect it to depreciate further, if sanctions on Russia's energy sector are expanded. US President Joe Biden has announced a ban on Russian oil and other energy imports, and the barrel of oil hit its highest price this week since mid 2008.

For more on Russia's oil exports ban, we were joined by Susannah Streeter in Bristol, UK. She is an investment analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

#RussiaAttacksUkraine #USImportBan #RussiaEnergyExport

Moscow is threatening to wage economic warfare against those countries that have imposed sanctions and crippled the Russian economy. Its biggest weapons, are oil and natural gas. Russia is a major source of both commodities, which were already in short supply before the crisis in Ukraine began. Paolo Montecillo reports.

Independent analyst, Neil Atkinson joined us from Paris.

#RussiaAttacksUkraine #RussiaSanctions #NaturalGas

Russia is threatening to cut natural gas supplies to Europe via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline as part of its response to sanctions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine. Analysts fear this could further raise oil and gas prices and heighten the turmoil in energy markets. Oil prices are see-sawing near 14-year highs. The US is considering acting alone to ban Russian imports rather than teaming up with European allies, easing concerns of a wider disruption to crude supplies.

OANDA senior market analyst, Craig Erlam joined us from London.

#RussiaAttacksUkraine #RussiaSanctions #NaturalGas

The US, EU and other world powers have piled economic sanctions on Russia. This collective action has triggered an exodus of companies from the country. The growing list of those reviewing their activity includes dozens of international businesses. And the latest to suspend operations are US payments networks.

Danni Hewson joined us from Huddersfield, UK. She's a financial analyst at AJ Bell.

#RussiaAttacksUkraine #RussiaSanctions #Visa