Markets unfazed as Hague confirms sanctions to come
Markets have shrugged off the news this morning that 96.7 per cent of Crimean voters voted for joining Russia, according to the official results of yesterday's referendum, with the FTSE 100 up almost 0.3 per cent, and the DAX and CAC 40 up almost 0.2 per cent.
Turnout yesterday has been reported at 83.1 per cent, with 1.23m people voting in favour of breaking from Ukraine, said Mikhail Malyshev, head of the Crimean Electoral Commission at a news conference today.
Meanwhile, foreign secretary William Hague has said this morning on Radio 4 that he’s confident an agreement between EU foreign ministers will be reached today on sanctions against Russia, including travel bans and asset freezes against individuals.
Russia's Micex is up almost 0.2 per cent – it opened up almost two per cent this morning – and the rouble is off the lows it's seen this morning.
Hague said there will be “far reaching economic consequences” for the country, adding it's already isolated itself globally and needs to think carefully about the long-term consequences of its actions.
He confirmed that military options “are not being looked at”, and haven’t at any stage even been “entertained”.
Of course, while many think economic sanctions can't come soon enough, they aren't such good news for investors. They’ll come as a stark reminder of the deep-seated anxieties over how safe it is to keep money in Russia, writes the FT's Joseph Cotterill. Moreover, how they react will get reflected in the rates charged to Russia corporate borrowers, along with the position the central bank takes when it comes to defending to rouble. Cotterill stresses what a pity that is: "there are plenty of decent Russian companies" – which'd be helped by a weakening rouble – but "Putin risk" is ensuring their demise.