Twitter Shares Take Wing, Oil Prices Rebound

Twitter Shares Take Wing, Oil Prices Rebound

Stock markets were relatively subdued on Monday while oil prices rose as Western nations eyed more sanctions on Russia, but Twitter stood out as its shares soared after Elon Musk purchased a major stake in the social network.

Twitter's stock soared more than 25 percent after news of the Tesla boss's investment, AFP said.

According to a document filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Musk acquired nearly 73.5 million Twitter shares -- a 9.2-percent stake in the company.

While Twitter is not large enough in terms of capitalization to impact the wider market, market analyst Patrick O'Hare said the move has bolstered sentiment.

"What the market is really responding to is the timing of Musk's purchase and the supposition that it is an encouraging signal that longer-term investment opportunities might be availing themselves now in former high-flying stocks," he said.

European stock markets closed with modest gains, while Wall Street also forged higher.

The tech-rich Nasdaq had an especially buoyant session, climbing nearly two percent behind strong gains in Amazon, Apple and other tech giants.

The EU said it is urgently discussing a new round of sanctions on Russia as it condemned "atrocities" reported in Ukrainian towns that have been occupied by Moscow's troops, while