US Treasury yields, S&P 500 Futures portray sour sentiment on Russia-Ukraine concerns

• Risk appetite weakens amid chatters over imminent Russia military action.
• US 10-year Treasury yields snap two-day winning streak, S&P 500 Futures track Wall Street’s losses.
• Second reading of US Q4 GDP will be important among many US data, risk catalysts will provide clearer directions.

Global markets remain jittery during early Thursday as fears of Russian military attack on Ukraine escalate. Also weighing the market sentiment are the recently upbeat comments from global central bankers.

To portray the mood, Wall Street marked losses and the S&P 500 Futures also drop 0.85% intraday at the latest. Further, the US 10-year Treasury yields snap two-day rebound by declining 1.5 basis points (bps) to 1.96% by the press time. It should be observed that the US Dollar Index (DXY) rises 0.12% intraday due to its safe-haven appeal.

Earlier in the day, Ukraine President Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy mentioned around 200K Russian troops near the border while also saying, "Today, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin did not respond to a request for a phone call." Additionally fueling the fears of imminent war between Russia and Ukraine are the rumors that Moscow will begin military actions at 04:00 AM local time.

As a result, Ukraine declared a 30-day state of emergency after witnessing cyber-attacks on their banks, government networks and financial institutions.

Elsewhere, policymakers from the European Central Bank (ECB), Bank of England (BOE), the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) and the US Federal Reserve (Fed) recently blamed inflation to stay hawkish. RBNZ Governor Adrian Orr and San Fransisco Fed President Mary Daly were the latest in the line.

Looking forward, updates for Russia’s military action and Ukraine will be crucial for the investors to watch. Also important will be the second reading of the US Q4 GDP, expected 7.0% annualized versus 6.9% prior, as well as the US New Home Sales for January and Personal Consumption Expenditure details for the fourth quarter (Q4).

Given the risk-off mood, DXY and gold are likely to benefit whereas Antipodeans like AUD/USD and NZD/USD may witness downside pressure.

Read: Breaking: US Blinken: Believes Russia WILL Invade Ukraine before the night is over