Oil Breaks $100, Havens Rally, Equities Drop as Russia Enters Ukraine

Oil Breaks $100, Havens Rally, Equities Drop as Russia Enters Ukraine

Oil prices broke past $100 and safe havens surged while equities tumbled Thursday after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "military operation" in Ukraine, accelerating fears of a major war.

Markets have been hammered this week after the Kremlin recognized two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine and said it would provide "peacekeepers" to the regions, leading to warnings of a conflagration, AFP said.

The Russian president said in a surprise statement on television: "I have made the decision of a military operation."

He also vowed retaliation against anyone who interfered and called on the Ukraine military to lay down its arms.

There were later reports of explosions in Kyiv as well as the eastern Ukrainian front.

Russia is said to have up to 200,000 soldiers massed on the border with Ukraine, and Washington has warned for weeks that Putin was planning an incursion.

Oil prices rocketed with Brent moving within spitting distance of the $100 not seen since September 2014, while gold and the Japanese yen -- safe havens in times of crisis and turmoil -- also jumped.

The dollar was up more than six percent against the ruble, which has been battered in recent weeks on worries about the impact of sanctions on the Russian economy.

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