ASX 200 tech shares take a hammering as Ukraine fears escalate

ASX 200 tech shares are taking a beating today amid Ukraine worries.

Red line going down on an ASX market chart which symbolises a falling share price.

Image source: Getty Images

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Key points

  • ASX 200 tech shares dropped heavily today
  • The Ukraine crisis is escalating with Russia moving troops into Luhansk and Donetsk
  • Names like Xero, WiseTech, Altium and Zip all dropped more than the ASX 200

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fell 1% to 7,161 points. But the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) went down almost 3%. Many of the biggest ASX 200 tech shares have fallen heavily.

The Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) share price fell 3.1%.

The WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) share price went down 4%.

Another sizeable fall belonged to the Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) share price, which went down 2.8%.

Some buy now, pay later operators have plunged again. Just today, the Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P) share price has fallen 9.7%, the Block Inc CDI (ASX: SQ2) share price has dropped 4.3% and the Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL) share price has sunk 9.3%.

What's going on in Ukraine?

Eastern Europe continues to capture global headlines.

Yesterday it seemed that there was a chance that Russia could be headed for a diplomatic path with US President Joe Biden agreeing in principle to hold a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

But things have deteriorated since then.

Global media reported on Russia's President Vladimir Putin officially recognising two breakaway regions of Ukraine controlled by Russian-backed separatists – Luhansk and Donetsk.

Then, Putin has sent Russian troops into Luhansk and Donetsk to perform "peacekeeping functions". The BBC reported that Australia's prime minister and a US envoy both say it's "nonsense" to describe the deployment as peacekeeping.

Ukraine President Zelensky said that the country isn't afraid and won't "yield anything to anyone".

Are sanctions incoming?

According to Reuters reporting, the US will impose sanctions on Russia and several other countries are planning to as well, including Canada.

The US has already put on sanctions to stop US business activity in the breakaway regions and ban importing all goods from those areas.

It's still to be announced what sanctions would be implemented if Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Time will tell what impacts this has on ASX 200 tech shares in the long-term.

Other movements in the ASX 200

The best performer in the ASX 200 today was the Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH) share price, which rose 9% after its result.

Aside from Zip, two of the biggest declines belonged to the share prices of Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) and AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX: AVZ) which fell 10.8% and 9.4% respectively.

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison owns Altium. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Altium, Block, Inc., Cochlear Ltd., WiseTech Global, Xero, and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended WiseTech Global and Xero. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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