Wall Street’s stocks slump as Putin makes inroads in Ukraine

• Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 439 points

• WTI crude oil rose 0.2% to close at $92.10 a barrel

Wall Street’s major indices slipped further as Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered Russian troops to breakaway regions of Ukraine. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 439 points, or 1.3%, to trade around 33,155, while S&P 500 dropped 72 points, or 1.7%, to around 4,232, deepening its descent into correction territory. The Nasdaq Composite was down 304 points, or 2.3%, at about 13,078, with 12,845.95 representing the level that would represent a bear market for the index.

Also read: Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies tumble as Russia-Ukraine tensions escalate

Last week, a death cross crystallized in the tech-heavy index. 

Ukraine-Russia situation

The concerns about a military conflict between Russia and Ukraine have triggered a bearish market. 

The Associated Press reported that Russian forces arrayed along Ukraine’s borders are “as ready as they can be” for an invasion, if ordered to launch it, citing a senior U.S. defense official in Washington.

The websites of Ukraine’s government, the foreign ministry, and state security service were offline on Wednesday as a result of a cyberattack, said the government.

Wall Street’s response

The 10-year Treasury yield rose 1.9 basis points to around 1.97%, pulling back after approaching 2%, last week.

WTI crude oil rose 0.2% to close at $92.10 a barrel. On Wednesday the Biden administration announced it will allow sanctions to move forward on the company in charge of building Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

Read more: Germany puts gas pipeline on hold amid Russia-Ukraine crisis

Airlines and cruise lines stocks were painted in red, along with some technology names. Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) lost nearly 2%, and Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) was down by 4%. E-commerce giant Amazon Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) fell more than 2%.

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPCE) stock rallied 6.5% after the company reassured investors it was on track to fly space tourists this year and to ready its next generation of spaceships.