(ABM FN) The Brussels stock exchange traded significantly lower on Thursday, above Russia invaded Ukraine. UCB, on the other hand, was a strong holder in the Bel20 index, which was 2.0 percent at 3,894.25 percent.

Shortly after Russian President Vladimirtin said in a speech on state television just after midnight that he was “performing a special military operation,” explosions from long-range missiles were visible in several Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kiev. The air raid siren went off in the western city of Lviv.

Putin made the announcement during an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council in New York, where the security situation in Ukraine was discussed. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said early this morning in a response to Russia “chosen a path of bloodshed and destruction” and that Western allies will respond.

“The market response to these developments has been seismic, with oil prices crossing $100 per tax for the first time since 2014,” said Deutsche Bank market strategist Jim Reid. “US Treasuries also rose strongly this morning, underlying investors targeting safe-havens, and gold prices rose to their highest level in more than a year. In addition, overnight in inter-bank trading, the ruble hit a record low against the dollar.”

“It is clear that tensions between Russia and Ukraine are holding back investors’ willingness to take risks. Stock trades are made with a large number of trades affecting the trades in the markets, with ultimate being the core of all concerns,” concluded AvaTrade’s market analyst Naem Aslam.

Geopolitical turmoil has seen the dollar on the rise this morning due to its safe-haven status. The euro/dollar currency pair is trading at 1.1210, compared to a position of 1.1350 on Wednesday.

In addition to developments in Ukraine, today investors will also be looking at the mid-term aid applications and oil inventories in the US.

Risers and Fallers

Investors will have a series of figures to digest this morning, including those business activities of UCB and AB InBev, but also EVS, Deceuninck, Van de Velde and Biocartis.

In the main index, UCB led the way with a price gain of 3.4 percent, ahead of the expected higher turnover. According to Berenberg and ING, the outlook of the Brussels pharmaceutical company for 2022 is also reassuring.

AB InBev performed slightly better than expected, according to Kepler Cheuvreux. Kepler expects the consensus for 2022 to be revised slightly upwards based on the brewer’s outlook. The stock fell 0.8 percent.

Kepler Cheuvreux raised the price target for Ageas very slightly from EUR 42.90 to EUR 43.70 while the process was pending. According to the stock house, investors have focused far too positively on the insurer’s prospects, which cannot be realized so easily. After Ageas was able to rise more than 4 percent on Wednesday, the share had to lose 4.2 percent again on Thursday morning.

Only KBC deed worsened with a 5.0 percent drop.

In the BelMid, Titan Cement won 0.2 percent, Biocartis lost 7.7 percent. The diagnostic loss made in credits for 2021 will need to quickly find new financing to continue.

EVS achieved excellent results for 2021, according to ING, but the outlook does disappoint. Management’s prudence is too much against supply chain problems, ING says, not because demand is falling. It fell 3.6 percent.

According to INGune, December has published profit figures for 2021 and sees margins under pressure. The proposal is 4.9 percent.

Kepler Cheuvreux put Shurgard on the buy list and raised the price target to 58.00 euros, after the strong annual figures on Wednesday. The stock lost 3.4 percent.

Among the smaller stocks, Warehouses Estates Belgium rose 3.3 percent, and Nyxoah fell 8.0 percent.

In 2021, according to analysts at KBC Securities, Van de Velde performed much better than expected, with revenue and EBITDA reaching 19 and 30 percent. That is why the advice went from Accumulating to Buying, and the target price went from 36.50 to 42.00 euros. The stock added 0.3 percent. Soon the lingerie company will welcome a new CEO.

Source: ABM Financial News

From Beursplein 5, the editors of Financial news from ABM keep a close eye on developments on the stock exchanges, and the Amsterdam stock exchange in particular. The information in this column is not intended as professional investment advice or as a recommendation to make.