- Oil giant BP reports drop in third-quarter net profit
- World's first green energy island sails into cost storm
- Georgia to partially recount disputed votes
- Pope's commission against abuse to publish first report
- Grieving parents fight to make Bulgaria's killer roads safer
- Taiwan worries about 'transactionalist' Trump as US votes
- Cuba's Buena Vista trumpeter Manuel 'Guajiro' Mirabal dies
- Spain seeks ground-breaking law for great apes
- Japan nuclear reactor near Fukushima to restart
- Suns scorch Lakers, Celtics stay perfect
- HSBC reports $8.5 billion pre-tax profit in third quarter
- A rare rehab centre fixes victims of Ethiopia's war
- The growing scourge of plastic pollution: in numbers
- Plastics: lifesaver turned environmental threat
- Outrage as Iran executes German-Iranian Jamshid Sharmahd
- China's only woman spaceflight engineer in crew for 'dream' mission
- Ohtani, Buehler overcome injuries to lift Dodgers a win from glory
- India temple firework explosion injures over 150
- S. Korean golfer Tom Kim sorry for damaging locker after playoff loss
- Dodgers beat Yankees to reach brink of World Series crown
- Asian shares rise as markets await tech results
- Iraq opens arms to Lebanese fleeing Israeli attacks
- Bruised Japan PM scrambles for support
- Saudi 'Davos in the desert' opens with region on war footing
- Myanmar's lost generation battles trauma, addiction at jungle rehab
- 'No one heard our cries': Tigray war rape survivors recount their ordeals
- Countdown to Busan: is a plastic pollution treaty in reach?
- Japan voters say 'punished' ruling party over scandal
- UNRWA, a lifeline for Palestinians amid decades of conflict
- Cuban blackout highlights urgency of boosting renewables: experts
- 'Amazing' AI de-ages Tom Hanks in new film 'Here'
- Big guns descend on Cali for final push in UN biodiversity talks
- 'I'm not a Nazi,' Trump insists as Harris blasts vile rhetoric
- Rodri wins men's Ballon d'Or as Real Madrid boycott
- Curry to miss at least two NBA games with left ankle injury
- Hefty electric vehicle costs dent Ford profits
- COP16 chair hails biodiversity attaining 'equal footing' with climate crisis
- Aitana Bonmati wins second successive women's Ballon d'Or
- Ohtani named in Dodgers starting line-up for World Series game three
- Real Madrid boycott Ballon d'Or ceremony
- US finalizes curbs on investing in Chinese tech
- Harris blasts Trump after racist rally rhetoric
- Tens of thousands protest in Georgia over 'stolen' election
- Man Utd sack Ten Hag, reportedly set to appoint Amorim
- Bolivia says Morales falsely claimed assassination bid
- Portuguese coach Ruben Amorim set for Manchester United job: reports
- Retiring Popp signs off as Germany's first female football superstar
- Chopin waltz unearthed after 200 years
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- Serie A strugglers Genoa sign Mario Balotelli
Stocks recover, oil drops on Russia sanctions impact
Stock markets mostly rose and oil prices fell Wednesday as economic sanctions imposed on Moscow over the Russia-Ukraine crisis were deemed less harsh than expected.
Brent crude stood at $93.50 per barrel, having soared to a seven-year high of $99.50 Tuesday on fears of disruptions to key Russian oil supplies.
Other commodities have also hit multi-year peaks on fears of all-out war.
"Market mood is not cheerful but the softer-than-feared sanctions somewhat help," SwissQuote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya noted Wednesday.
Trading floors remain on edge, with Ukraine mobilising its military reserve and urging its citizens to leave Russian territory as Moscow sharpened its demands, increasing fears of all-out war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has defied an avalanche of international sanctions to put his forces on stand-by to occupy two rebel-held areas of eastern Ukraine.
Sanctions include moves against Russian banks, cutting the country off from Western financing by targeting Moscow's sovereign debt, and penalising oligarchs and their families who are part of Putin's inner circle.
US and allies including Britain have warned of further sanctions should Putin extended his country's military grip beyond the two territories in the eastern Donbas region.
So far the sanctions were not as bad as markets had feared -- crucially with none aimed at Russia's crude exports -- providing some much-needed breathing room for investors and halting the surge in oil prices that has seen both main contracts pile on more than 20 percent so far this year.
Germany has though halted certification of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia.
- 'Considerable risk' -
"There's still considerable risk that oil prices may surge above $100 a barrel" if the situation escalates, said Vivek Dhar at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
"Oil markets are particularly vulnerable at the moment given that global oil stockpiles are at seven‑year lows."
Dhar added that spare oil capacity among the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, including Russia, was "being questioned due to disappointing OPEC+ supply growth".
The crisis comes with investors preparing for a series of interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve as it tries to rein in 40-year-high inflation.
Commentators said that while a March hike is baked in, forecasts for further increases this year are being affected by events in Europe as officials try to assess the impact on the economy.
"Markets will likely bubble along sideways now until we see Mr Putin's next move," forecast Jeffrey Halley, analyst at OANDA trading group.
- Key figures around 1200 GMT -
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 7,519.10 points
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.6 percent at 14,784.88
Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.0 percent at 6,852.37
EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.9 percent at 4,020.66
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.6 percent at 23,660.28 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.9 percent at 3,489.15 (close)
New York - Dow: DOWN 1.4 percent at 33,596.61 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: Closed for a holiday
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 0.2 percent at $93.66 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.5 percent at $91.44 per barrel
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1345 from $1.1330 late Tuesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3595 from $1.3588
Euro/pound: UP at 83.44 pence from 83.35 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 115.09 yen from 115.08 yen
H.Silva--PC