Yesterday (28 August) was light on significant economic data but heavy with geopolitical anxieties, according to FTAdviser sister title FastFT.
Towards the end of a month in which concerns about the march of Islamist insurgents in Iraq and the crisis over Ukraine have dominated, investors’ attention was squarely on the latter on Thursday as more evidence emerged of Russia’s direct military involvement in Ukraine.
Nato warned that Russia has “well over 1,000 troops” in Ukraine, as Russian officials continued to deny any military presence in eastern Ukraine.
This is how markets finished on Thursday in New York:
• Ten-year Treasury yields reached a new low for the year of 2.34 per cent. US government bonds have been a destination for those investors wanting to scale back risk.
• The S&P 500 finished 0.2 per cent lower at 1996.74. It closed above the 2,000 level for the first time on Tuesday.
• Gold prices closed up 0.5 per cent at $1,289.52 an ounce. The yellow metal is up 7.3 per cent this year.
• Wheat prices jumped to their highest since the start of July, with December figures climbing almost 2 per cent. Ukraine and Russia account for about 20 per cent of wheat exports.
