Msci Stock News

Trading in a handful of Russia-related exchange-traded funds were halted indefinitely on Friday by the NYSE Arca and CBOE BZX exchanges, citing "regulatory concern."

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MSCI''s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan falls to lowest level since November 2020.

NEW YORK, USA – Oil prices initially soared on Thursday, March 3, as the Ukraine war sparked a run on commodities that raised fears of “stagflation,” while equity markets fell as investors gauge the impact of the Federal Reserve’s plans to tighten monetary policy. The fresh surge in energy prices heightened worries about the European economic outlook, leading the euro to slide to its lowest level in almost six years against Britain’s pound and pinning it near 21-month lows versus the dollar. Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil, climbed to within 16 cents of $120 a barrel before falling on hopes the United States and Iran will agree soon to a nuclear deal that could add output to a badly undersupplied market . The price of aluminum, copper, and nickel raced to fresh highs as the widening sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine threatened to further disrupt the flow of commodities from one of the world’s major producers. The jump in commodity prices has raised concerns about the potential for stagflation – when rising inflation and stagnate output roils the economy and crimps employment. “Investors are more fearful of a Fed reaction to stagflation than stagflation itself,” said Kristina Hooper, chief global market strategist at Invesco. “We will see a flash of stagflation,” she said. “But markets would be comfortable with that if they felt that the Fed would be comfortable with that.” Markets are volatile, leading investors to try to figure out a lot of moving parts “in one fell swoop,” said Jeff Mortimer, director of investment strategy at BNY Mellon Wealth Management. “Markets are trying to recalibrate what the Fed will do and its views on inflation,” he said. “To us it’s how to get a handle on what’s inflation going to be 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 months from now.

Asian stocks tumbled at the open Friday on growing fears about the Ukraine war as it emerged that a fire had broken out at Europe''s biggest nuclear power plant after it was hit by Russian shelling. MSCI''s index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down by 1.31 per cent.

MSCI''s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan shed 0.8 per cent and traded near the day''s lows, while markets across Asia were in a sea of red.

MSCI will now call Russia a standalone market. MSCI standalone markets are not included in any widely followed passive indices like the MSCI Emerging Markets Index or MSCI Frontier Markets Index, resulting in passive funds staying away from them, according to Edelweiss.

Both MSCI and FTSE Russell have moved to drop Russian equities from their indexes and reclassify the country, citing accessibility requirements.

ASSET management firms have suspended the dealing and valuation of unit trusts with significant exposure to Russia securities, as MSCI and FTSE Russell announced that they would drop Russia from their widely followed equity indexes.

In Episode 6 of The Green Investor from Investopedia, Editor in Chief Caleb Silver talks about ESG rating with MSCI Research Managing Director Meggin Thwing Eastman.

The removal of Russia from benchmark indexes is providing another boost to one of the world’s hottest emerging markets.

MSCI said access to Russia''s market no longer meets minimum requirements for the country to retain its emerging markets status.