Dow tumbles as West considers cutting off Russian oil

Oil prices are surging — and it looks like Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) is betting the energy boom will continue.

Berkshire Hathaway disclosed in a regulatory filing Friday that it now owns more than 91 million shares of Occidental Petroleum (OXY), about a 9% stake. Shares of Occidental Petroleum were up 5% in premarket trading Monday following a nearly 18% pop Friday.

Berkshire bought about 61 million of those shares just last week to add to the 30 million it already owned. And all of that is on top of Berkshire's gives right to buy nearly 84 million more Occidental shares — part of a 2019 deal in which Berkshire invested $10 billion in Occidental to help the company buy rival Anadarko Petroleum.

Though Berkshire is stocking up, another major institutional investor is bailing on Occidental: Carl Icahn. In another SEC filing, Occidental noted that two directors on its board affiliated with Icahn decided to resign "effective immediately...in connection with the exit of the Icahn Group from its entire position in the Company’s common stock."

Icahn was critical of Occidental's Anadarko deal, which he called "misguided" after Occidental outbid rival Chevron for Anadarko.

US stocks were mixed Monday morning, rebounding off their premarket lows after oil prices soared to a 14-year high above $120 a barrel due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. More major Western companies, including streaming giant Netflix, are suspending business in Russia as sanctions from the US and Europe against the Vladimir Putin regime continue.

Stocks are tumbling on Monday as oil prices soared above $120 barrel to their highest level in 13 years, raising fears about an inflationary shock to the global economy.

European markets plunged in early trade. Germany's DAX 30 (DAX) and France's CAC 40 (CAC40) both fell by more than 3%. London's FTSE 100 (UKX) was down nearly 2%. The sell-off followed big losses in Asia. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index (HSI) sank as much as 5% before closing down 3.9%, its worst daily drop in seven months. Japan's Nikkei 225 (N225) tumbled nearly 3% and China's Shanghai Composite (SHCOMP) dropped more than 2%.

The latest market turmoil came as US crude futures surged 6% to trade at $123 a barrel, the highest level since August 2008. Brent crude briefly spiked as high as $139 a barrel before easing back to $125, still up more than 6%.

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US stock futures tumbled Monday morning as the United States and Europe continued discussions about a Russian oil ban – sanctions that they had until recently shunned to insulate Western civilians from surging gas prices.

The discussions alone sent oil surging, and prices at the pump in the United States soared above $4 a gallon nationwide. Investors fear that dramatically high inflation could eat into companies’ bottom lines or even spark a recession.

American Express (AXP) is the latest credit card company to announce it is ending its operations in Russia as its invasion into Ukraine escalates.

On Sunday, the company said in a statement that globally issued American Express cards will no longer work in Russia, and cards issued in Russia won't work outside the country.

American Express also said it is ending its business operations in Belarus.

"This is in addition to the previous steps we have taken, which include halting our relationships with banks in Russia impacted by the US and international government sanctions," American Express said in a statement Sunday.

The average price for a gallon of regular gas hit $4 Sunday, the highest level since 2008. And with prices surging amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, the record high of $4.11 per gallon set that year is likely to fall any day.

The AAA national average stands at $4.01, up 9 cents a gallon since Saturday's reading, and up 47 cents, or 13%, since before Russia invaded Ukraine 11 days ago.

The daily weekend increases are larger than any one-day jump in price since Hurricane Katrina slammed the US Gulf Coast and damaged much of the nation's oil and gas producing regions in 2005, sending prices soaring.

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