Click here for live updates Oil prices surged above the $100 per barrel mark on Wednesday after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the launch of military action against Ukraine. U.S. crude futures were up by 5.46 percent and trading at $97.56 per barrel as of 10:27 a.m. GMT, while Brent crude futures were up 6.47 percent at $103.32, the first time they have been over the $100 mark since 2014. Meanwhile, natural gas prices at one point surged nearly 6 percent. The surge in prices came shortly after Putin announced in a televised address that a military operation was set to get underway in Ukraine with the intention of protecting civilians and to “demilitarize” Ukraine, in response to alleged threats coming from Ukraine. Shortly after Putin’s announcement regarding the military operation, which Ukraine’s defense ministry called “an unjustified, deceitful, and cynical invasion,” explosions were reported in Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, as well as in other key cities, such as Kharkiv, Mariupol, and …
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