Ukraine Negotiator: There have been enough developments to hold meeting of Russia/Ukraine Presidents

There have been enough developments to hold a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, a Ukrainian negotiator said on Tuesday following earlier peace talks, reported Reuters.

Similarly, top Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky on Tuesday said that talks between the two sides had been constructive and that Russia would be looking at Ukrainian proposals and reporting than back to President Vladimir Putin. A meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy would only be possible if a deal has been rubber-stamped by the foreign ministers, Medinsky added. 

Market Reaction

A recent announcement alluding to a ceasefire around key northern Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Chernihiv as well as updates alluding to constructive peace talks has triggered an improvement in risk appetite. The safe-haven US dollar dipping as a result, with the DXY recently slipping back under to 98.50 and to session lows. Other safe-havens have also taken a knock, with spot gold dipping around $10 in a matter of minutes to test the $1900 level. 

The US 10-year yield also popped to fresh session highs above 2.52% as safe-haven US bonds come under selling pressure. Meanwhile, the unwind of geopolitical risks has seen oil prices come under sharp selling pressure, with front-month WTI futures dropping hard from the $107 area to the low $100s.