Moscow Stock Market Crashes Due to Concerns About New Sanctions

The stock market in Moscow fell sharply on Monday on concerns about new economic sanctions from the West against Russia over the war in Ukraine.

The Moscow MOEX index had now fallen to its lowest level since February 24, when the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. Russia is mobilizing more troops to fight in Ukraine and is holding referendums in Ukraine’s occupied territories on whether to join Russia.

The MOEX index fell more than 7 percent, and the RTS gauge lost nearly 8 percent. Recently, there has been a lot of unrest among investors in Moscow due to the mobilization of 300,000 reservists and the referenda in occupied territories.

Investors believe these developments will make a ceasefire in Ukraine even more unlikely while tensions with the West continue to rise. As a result, the West may be able to impose even tougher sanctions on technology exports to Russia and blacklist even more Russians.

In addition, falling oil prices are also putting pressure on investor sentiment in Moscow. As a result, lower prices could reduce Russia’s oil export revenues.