Photo by ALEXANDRE LALLEMAND on Unsplash

European stocks fell sharply on Thursday morning as Russian forces invaded Ukraine.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down 4%, while Germany’s DAX had tumbled 4.5% and France’s CAC was falling, nearly 4.6% in the red. Italy’s FTSE MIB was down 4.2%.

In the UK, the benchmark FTSE 100 was down 3.3%.

While major stock indexes in the UK, Germany and France were down 3% or more, the Russian MOEX was seeing the most bleeding. In early trades Thursday, the index fell by more than 45%, with trading briefly halted amid the invasion news.

At the time of writing, the MOEX is down 30%, with this likely to be the index’s worst session since 2016.

Gold Soars As Bitcoin Slips To $35,000

Elsewhere in the markets, gold prices have jumped more than 4% to $1,978 per ounce, while oil broke above $100 per barrel.

In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin price has shed nearly 10% to test lows of $35,000.

Ukraine Vows To Defend Its Freedom

The massive losses across the European market come as investor anxiety hits the roof amid concerns of an extended hit on the markets.

Reports of explosions in several major cities in Ukraine continue to emerge, including in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister confirmed this via an update on Twitter.

Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has vowed that the country will not give up its freedom.

“Russia treacherously attacked our state in the morning, as Nazi Germany did in WWII years. As of today, our countries are on different sides of world history. Russia has embarked on a path of evil, but Ukraine is defending itself and won't give up its freedom no matter what Moscow thinks,” he said

The EU, Germany and United Kingdom have condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin, while the US has vowed to stand with its NATO allies.