Russia, Ukraine hits stocks in down week as oil tops $115

U.S. stocks sank Friday as the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces intensified. The crisis outweighed a red-hot jobs report for February and sent global oil prices soaring.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 180 points, or 0.5%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite fell by 0.8% and 1.7%, respectively. Financials were the worst performers in the S&P 500. All three of the major averages fell for the week. 

RUSSIA INVADES UKRAINE: LIVE UPDATES

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
I:DJI	DOW JONES AVERAGES	44296.51	+426.16	+0.97%
SP500	S&P 500	5969.34	+20.63	+0.35%
I:COMP	NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX	19003.651134	+31.23	+0.16%
XLF	FINANCIAL SELECT SECTOR SPDR ETF	50.73	+0.55	+1.10%

MANUFACTURERS OFFER ‘UPSKILLING’ AND SEEK ‘CREATORS’ TO FILL OVER 800,000 JOBS

The February jobs report blew past expectations with the addition of 678,000 nonfarm jobs last month. In January, 467,000 jobs were added. The unemployment rate fell to 3.8%, the lowest since February 2020.

Russian forces gained ground, shelling Europe’s largest nuclear power plant and sparking a fire early Friday as they pressed their attack on a crucial energy-producing Ukrainian city. Oil prices remained elevated early Friday.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
USO	UNITED STATES OIL FUND - USD ACC	74.25	+1.05	+1.43%
BNO	UNITED STATES BRENT OIL FUND - USD ACC	29.82	+0.25	+0.85%
XLE	ENERGY SELECT SECTOR SPDR ETF	97.26	+0.12	+0.12%

U.S. benchmark crude rose to $115 per barrel, gaining 26% for the week, while Brent crude, the international price standard, closed above $118.11 per barrel. Energy stocks rose in tandem as the top S&P performers. 

BIPARTISAN PRESSURE TO BAN RUSSIAN ENERGY IMPORTS GROWS ON BIDEN

In stocks, Costco shares were under pressure as container delays remain an issue. Still, quarterly profit and revenue exceeded analyst expectations. 

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Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
COST	COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP.	964.01	+8.36	+0.87%

Gap shares popped after reporting a narrower loss than expected, two cents versus the 13 cents Wall Street was forecasting. Revenue rose to $4.5 billion, also higher than estimates. Same-store sales rose 3%, slightly below expectations. 

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
GPS	NO DATA AVAILABLE	-	-	-

Smith & Wesson shares tumbled after the company disclosed demand for firearms has cooled from pandemic heights. 

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
SWBI	SMITH & WESSON BRANDS	13.37	+0.12	+0.91%

U.S. corporations continue to react to the Ukrainian crisis. Airbnb is suspending Russian business, Uber is offering free rides to the Poland border and Microsoft announced it will stop sales in Russia. 

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
ABNB	AIRBNB INC.	137.34	+4.08	+3.06%
UBER	UBER TECHNOLOGIES INC.	71.51	+1.87	+2.69%
MSFT	MICROSOFT CORP.	417.00	+4.13	+1.00%

Cruise stocks remain in focus. Royal Caribbean noted it is altering some routes around Russia and Ukraine due to the conflict.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
RCL	ROYAL CARIBBEAN GROUP	241.46	+3.94	+1.66%
CCL	CARNIVAL CORP.	24.88	-0.46	-1.82%

In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin traded down to the $41,000 level. 

FED'S POWELL TO PROPOSE 25 BPS RATE INCREASE AT MARCH MEETING

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell warned Thursday that the fighting in Ukraine is likely to further magnify the high inflation troubling world economies. Russia is a key oil producer, and prices have been rising as global supplies are threatened by the conflict, raising concerns that persistent inflation could become even hotter.

Powell said he is committed to doing whatever is necessary to slow inflation, underscoring the high-risk challenge in raising interest rates enough to cool price pressures without triggering another recession.

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Ken Martin and The Associated Press contributed to this report.