Oil prices: London stock exchange suspends 27 Russian listings as petrol prices soar - as it happened
Price of fuel shoots up as oil price continues to climb amid Putin’s war with Ukraine
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The London Stock Exchange said it has suspended trading 28 companies linked to Russia including gas giant Gazprom and the country’s second biggest lender Sberbank.
The LSE halted transactions in the shares with immediate effect on Thursday morning after prices plummeted following sanctions imposed in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, UK petrol prices hit a new high of 151.67p per litre amid Vladimir Putin's war with Ukraine.
As the conflict entered its second week, the price of oil soared and Brent crude - the benchmark - had the cost of a barrel at nearly $115 per barrel earlier on Thursday - the highest level in years.
This is in turn affecting the cost of petrol in the UK, which hit new highs on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the UK is on course to spend £6.3m per day on imports of Russian gas, potentially helping to fund the war in Ukraine, according to new analysis.
Around 4 per cent of the UK's gas demand is covered by Russian imports. At current high prices, that equates to £2.3bn in a year, The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit calculated.
We’re finishing up our coverage of how the Ukraine war is affecting the global economy.
Thanks for reading and have a good day.
Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of oil prices, as Putin’s war with Ukraine sends prices soaring.
Stay tuned and we’ll bring you updates throughout the day.
Petrol prices hit new record high
Fuel prices have hit a new record high as the cost of oil soars due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Figures from data firm Experian Catalist show the average cost of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts was 151.67p on Tuesday, up from 151.16p on Monday.
Neil Lancefield has the story:
Petrol prices hit new record high
The average cost of a litre at UK forecourts was 151.67p on Tuesday, with diesel at 155.23p.
UK spending millions on Russian gas imports
The UK is on course to spend £6.3m per day on imports of Russian gas, potentially helping to fund the war in Ukraine, according to new analysis.
Around 4 per cent of the UK’s gas demand is covered by Russian imports.
At current high prices, that equates to £2.3bn in a year, The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) calculated.
Dr Simon Cran-McGreehin, Head of Analysis at the ECIU said: “Although not at the same level of some other European countries, the UK has been spending billions of pounds on Russian gas that could now be being used to fund Putin’s war in Ukraine.
“This is another reason why the UK needs to break its dependency on gas and insulating our homes, deploying electric heat pumps and shifting from gas power stations to renewables is the way to do it.”
Households face further spike in living costs as Ukraine war threatens to send oil to record highs
Oil disruption signals a renewed cost of living squeeze on Europe, our business correspondent Ben Chapman writes.
Read his full piece here:
Crude oil hits eight-year high – and households could pick up the bill
Oil disruption signals a renewed cost of living squeeze on Europe, as Ben Chapman explains
Markets mixed as oil prices rise
Global stock markets were mixed Thursday and oil prices jumped another $5 per barrel after the head of the Federal Reserve said he supports a smaller rise in interest rates than some expected.
London and Tokyo advanced while Paris and Frankfurt slipped as Russian forces whose attack on Ukraine has roiled financial markets bombarded the country’s second-largest city and besieged two ports.
Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Ratings cut Russia’s credit rating Thursday, saying the invasion and Western sanctions have hurt Moscow’s ability to repay debts and raised risks for the economy and stability.
In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London lost 0.1% to 7,420.78 and Frankfurt’s DAX shed 0.7% to 13,900.03. The CAC in Paris slipped 0.2% to 6,482.94.On Wall Street, the future for the S&P 500 was 0.3% lower and the contract for the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.2%.
In Asian trading, the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo rose 0.7% to 26,577.27 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 0.6% to 22,467.34. The Shanghai Composite Index lost less than 0.1% to 3,481.11.
ICYMI: Cost of living crisis will get worse as a result of Russian sanctions, minister admits
Sanctions imposed on Russia in retaliation for the invasion of Ukraine will make the domestic cost of living crisis worse, a cabinet minister has admitted.
Liz Truss said Britain must be prepared to take an “economic hit”, but insisted it would be “far worse” to allow Vladimir Putin to succeed in his military offensive in Ukraine.
Our politics correspondent Ashley Cowburn has the story:
Cost of living crisis will get worse due to Russian sanctions, minister admits
‘It is right that we are prepared to take an economic hit,’ Liz Truss says
Wheat prices rise
European gas prices also hit record levels on Thursday while wheat prices jumped higher in a worrying sign for food costs.
Sanctions have so far excluded energy shipments from Russia, the world’s largest gas and second-largest oil exporter, but the West is avoiding commodities from Russia to send a strong signal to the country in response to the Ukraine conflict.
Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com, said: “Self-sanctions are already playing a big role... Shell, BP, Chevron are all exiting but traders and customers are swerving Russian oil without any sanctions needed.”
He added there was “nowhere to hide for European consumers about to get hit by a mega electricity bill and soaring inflation”.
US could target Russian oil and gas exports
Leaders of oil cartel Opec and other major oil-producing countries decided on Wednesday to continue with their plan to gradually increase oil production.
The move came after a decision by the United States and other major governments in the International Energy Agency (IEA) to release 60 million barrels from strategic reserves to boost supplies.
Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: "The US has targeted Russia's oil refining sector with sanctions, with the possibility that Russia's oil and gas exports will be next on the list.
"With Opec+ refusing to respond to the sharp spike in oil prices by sticking to its 400,000 barrels per day increase in output in March and with the market unfazed by the IEA's global crude reserve release, the geopolitical tensions look set to push oil prices higher with Brent crude on track to breach 120 US dollars or even 125 US dollars."
London stock exchange suspends trading in 28 Russian-linked listings
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) said it has suspended 28 listings with links to Russia from its markets after sanctions were introduced following the invasion of Ukraine.
It added that it is “closely monitoring” the impact of the conflict and is “actively engaging” with regulators and authorities over relevant sanctions.
Chief executive David Schwimmer said: “London Stock Exchange Group has suspended trading in 28 Russian-listed securities.
“This has been based on sanctions and the ability to run an orderly market.
“Suspensions are driven by those decisions, so if we see any other any other securities affected by sanctions then similar actions will take place.
“This is a very complex and fast-moving situation and we are working closely with regulators across all parts of our business.”
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