Russian stock market rout as shares crash after Trump blasts Putin

Russia's stock market saw over £900 million wiped off shares in the space of a couple of hours, as panic gripped investors. Investors appeared to be spooked by Donald Trump's sharp criticism of Vladimir Putin, following Russia's heavy bombardment of Ukrainian cities over the weekend.

The US President called the Kremlin boss "absolutely CRAZY" in a post to his Truth Social channel. Energy giant Gazprom saw its shares plunge by 3.5%, while the stocks of two of Russia's largest banks - Sberbank and VTB - fell by 1.5% and 2.4% respectively in early trading.

Russia's banking sector faces further Western sanctions, with the EU threatening to disconnect 20 more banks from the SWIFT payment system.

Over the weekend, Russia launched an all out aerial bombardment on Ukrainian cities, leaving many dead and injured civilians - among them children.

In the attacks on Saturday night, Russia carried out strikes using 298 drones, as well as 69 cruise and ballistic missiles. The following night, Putin's army fired nine cruise missiles and launched 355 drones at Ukraine.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky alleged that the US's "silence" after recent Russian attacks is encouraging Putin.

Trump has so far resisted attempts to introduce a new package of "bone crushing" sanctions against Moscow, drawn up by his close ally Republican Senator Lindsey Graham.

He appears to be walking away from peace negotiations, saying a deal could only be negotiated between Russia and Ukraine following a two hour phone call with Putin last week.

Trump has been reluctant to publicly criticise Putin and has even blamed Zelensky for starting the war.

In contrast, European leaders have sought to increase the political and economic pressure on Russia's leader.

The day after Trump and Putin spoke, the EU approved its 17th package of sanctions against Moscow, including measures against Russia's "shadow fleet" of oil tankers, which the country uses to break embargoes and sustain its economy.

"More sanctions on Russia are in the works," top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas said on X, announcing the package.

Putin's army has stepped up its attacks on Ukrainian civilians since the start of the year, according to Human Rights Watch.

Russian attacks in Ukraine since January 2025 have killed and injured more civilians than in the same period in 2024, according to the agency.