Global Stocks, Wall St Rebound From Ukraine Jitters

BEIJING (AP) -- Global stock markets and Wall Street futures rebounded Wednesday from jitters over Western sanctions on Russia in response to President Vladimir Putin's authorization to send soldiers into eastern Ukraine.

London and Frankfurt opened higher. Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul advanced. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.

Oil prices edged higher on unease about possible disruption to Russian supplies.

Global stocks sank Tuesday after Washington, Britain and the 27-nation European Union imposed sanctions on Russian banks, officials and business leaders.

"Current U.S. sanctions on Russia are less-than-feared by the market," Anderson Alves of ActivTrades said in a report. Alves noted Western governments have more "acute options" including reducing Russia's access to the SWIFT system for global bank transactions.

In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London rose 0.4% to 7,523.96 and Frankfurt's DAX gained 0.7% to 14,798.01. The CAC in Paris added 0.9% to 6,845.85.

On Wall Street, the future for the benchmark S&P 500 index rose 0.8% and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.7%.

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 lost 1%. That put it 10.3% below its Jan. 3 all-time high and into a correction, or a decline of at least 10% but less than 20%.

The Dow lost 1.4% and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.2%.

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.9% to 3,489.15 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 0.6% to 23,660.28.

The Kospi in Seoul advanced 0.5% to 2,719.53 and Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 added 0.6% to 7,205.70.

New Zealand rose after the central bank raised its benchmark interest rate by one-quarter point to 1% to cool inflation. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand said its benchmark rate would be raised to more than 3% by next year.

India's Sensex opened up 0.2% at 57,425.96. Singapore and Indonesia gained while Bangkok declined.

Global stocks already had given up some of their gains due to uncertainty about the impact of plans by the Federal Reserve and other central banks to withdraw ultra-low interest rates and other economic stimulus.

Markets were rattled after Putin recognized the independence of rebel-held areas in Ukraine and sent in troops in defiance of U.S. and European pressure.

Wheat prices rose on concern about supplies from Russia and Ukraine being disrupted. Prices of nickel and aluminum, for which Russia is a major supplier, also rose.

European gas prices jumped after Germany withdrew a key document needed for certification of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia.

In energy markets, benchmark U.S. crude rose 25 cents to $92.16 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.28 on Tuesday to $92.35. Brent crude, the price basis for international oils, advanced 30 cents to $94.15 per barrel in London. It gained $1.45 the previous session to $96.84.

The dollar edged down to 115.05 yen from Tuesday's 115.07 yen. The euro gained to $1.1341 from $1.1334.