Natural gas prices jump after Germany sanctions

The price of natural gas tilted higher in the overnight session after Germany announced plans to sanction the Nordstream 2 gas pipeline. The decision happened after Russian troops entered two regions of Ukraine on Monday night. In a statement, the German chancellor said that the action was necessary to prevent Russia from moving ahead with its invasion. In a statement, the deputy of the Russian security council said that these measures will push gas prices higher for ordinary German residents. The US, UK, EU, and Japan also unveiled sanctions that stopped short of being the toughest on the table. 

The Dow Jones declined by more than 200 points in reaction to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The index also fell in reaction to Home Depot, one of its major constituents. The firm said that its total sales rose by 11% in the fiscal fourth quarter to $35.72 billion. Its earnings per share jumped to $3.21 while its net income was $3.35 billion. The stock however dropped by more than 7% as investors reflected on the company’s weak guidance. Analysts expect that the sector will slow down as the fiscal stimulus impacts fade and people go back to work.

The EURUSD pair rose in the evening session as investors reacted to the latest American consumer confidence data. According to the Conference Board, the country’s confidence declined from 113 in January to 110.3 in February. This drop was better than analysts were expecting. The pair will today react to upcoming EU inflation numbers. Economists expect the data to show that the headline CPI increased from 5.0% in December to 5.1% in January as energy prices rose. 

EUR/USD

The EURUSD pair rose slightly as the crisis in Ukraine unfolded. It is trading at 1.1352, which is significantly higher than this week’s low of 1.1286. On the four-hour chart, the pair is trading between the 25-day and 50-day moving averages. It is also along the 61.8% Fibonacci retracement level while the DeMarker indicator has moved above the oversold point. Therefore, the pair will likely keep rising as bulls target the next key resistance at 1.1386.

XNG/USD

The XNGUSD pair has been in a bullish trend in the past few days. It has managed to move from the month-to-date low of 3.85 to the current 4.50. It has moved above the 25-day and 50-day moving averages while the price is between the 50% and 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level. Therefore, the pair will likely keep rising as bulls target the next key resistance at 4.74.

USD/CHF

The USDCHF pair rose to a high of 0.9227 in the overnight session. This was the highest it has been since 16 February. The pair managed to move above the upper side of the descending channel while the Stochastic oscillator moved close to the overbought level. It is also slightly below the 25-day moving average. Therefore, the pair will likely keep rising today after it crossed a key resistance level.