Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business.
The deepening Ukraine crisis has sent global stocks tumbling and crude oil surging. Last night, Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered his military to enter the Russian-controlled areas of southeast Ukraine. In a lengthy televised address, he had recognised the territories of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states.
Washington, European and other countries have condemned the move and threatened to impose tough sanctions.
Boris Johnson is chairing a meeting of the UK’s emergency Cobra committee this morning to sign off a package of sanctions against Russia. The initial signs were that the package would target “those complicit in the violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity”.
You can read more on our Ukraine crisis live blog.
Financial markets are in for a torrid day. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei lost 1.7%, Hong Kong’s Hang Sing tumbled 2.9%, the Shanghai Composite Index fell just over 1% and South Korea’s Kospi dropped 1.35%.
…
