Shares tumble as Russia-Ukraine tensions rattle markets

Global markets dropped sharply on Monday as concerns about military tension between Russia and Ukraine and interest rate rises prompted sell-offs.

In the US, all three major stock indexes were down more than 2% at mid-morning, extending previous losses.

London's FTSE 100 also dropped more than 2%, while exchanges in Germany and France slid more than 3%.

The falls come ahead of a meeting of the US central bank and amid warnings of a potential invasion in Ukraine.

On Sunday, the US, the UK and Australia ordered diplomats' families to leave Kyiv, as Russia deployed some 100,000 troops and heavy armour at the Ukrainian border.

"Ukraine clearly is a concern that's weighing on the markets today," said Darren Schuringa, chief executive officer of investment adviser ASYMmetric ETFs.

"This will continue to weigh on the markets for the foreseeable future until there's some type of resolution and more clarity as to what the outcome looks like."

Concerns among investors about the military tensions have added to jitters over the possible actions of the US Federal Reserve, which is due to meet this week and has been signalling it plans to raise interest rates - typically a move that depresses stock prices by making other kinds of investments more attractive.

Investors are also selling shares as they try to position themselves ahead of a wave of reports from companies about their end-of-year performance.

The declines - which have helped make this January the worst in years for US indexes - are seen as a possible warning about other firms.

Walt Disney, which has been focusing on its streaming strategy to compete with Netflix, was the biggest loser on the Dow on Monday, down more than 4%, while Tesla, which reports this week, fell more than 6%.

The S&P and Nasdaq have both fallen more than 10% from their previous records - a drop considered a market "correction".

The falls have not been limited to company shares. The price of Bitcoin has dropped more than 30% so far this year, including a 5% decline on Monday.