Stocks climb on prospect of easing Ukraine tension

Stocks climb on prospect of easing Ukraine tension

Stocks















Bloomberg

Stocks rise on Wednesday as traders weighed the prospect of diminishing tension over Ukraine and the risk of further twists after Russia said it was withdrawing some forces.

Shares were up in Japan, Hong Kong and China, where slowing inflation is boosting the central bank’s scope to ease policy to prop up growth. US futures were stable and European contracts rise after technology stocks helped the S&P 500 snap three days of losses.

Russia announced a partial pullback of thousands of troops massed near the Ukrainian border and appeared to favor a diplomatic solution to the crisis there. President Joe Biden said the US has yet to verify Moscow’s claims and an invasion remains possible, which the Kremlin has repeatedly denied.

Oil was above $92 a barrel as traders assessed worries about potential disruptions to commodity supplies. Havens like longer-maturity Treasuries and gold that sold off in the past 24 hours largely maintained those losses.

At the same time, other parts of global markets are flashing ongoing nervousness. Volatility gauges for both the S&P 500 and the Treasury market are sitting significantly above 12-month averages, a sign that traders