Asia shares joined a global rally on Wednesday as hopes rose for a negotiated end to the Ukraine conflict, while bond markets signaled concern overnight that aggressive rate hikes could damage the U.S. economy after 10-year yields briefly dipped below two year rates.
Russia and Ukraine are important nodes in the global space industry, nodes that have been disrupted by the recent war and the sanctions that followed. Launches have been cancelled, Mars rovers have been grounded, and engines have remained undelivered. Yet this East-West delinking might also provide a new impetus for growth.
Ukraine is prepared to discuss adopting a neutral status as part of a peace deal with Russia but such a pact would have to be guaranteed by third parties and put to a referendum, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in remarks aired on Sunday.
Senior U.S. officials on Sunday said they could not confirm reports that U.S. intelligence indicates that Russia is planning to invade Ukraine on Wednesday, but they repeated warnings for Americans to leave Ukraine immediately.
