World shares drop after Putin orders troops to east Ukraine

By ELAINE KURTENBACH
AP Business Writer

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares in Asia have fallen sharply after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered forces into separatist regions of eastern Ukraine, suggesting a long-feared invasion was possibly underway. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index dropped 2.2% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 3.2% in early trading Tuesday. Oil prices jumped, with U.S. crude up 2.8%. U.S. markets were closed on Monday for Presidents Day. Shares slipped in Europe on Monday as investors awaited developments in the Ukraine crisis. Western powers fear Russia might use skirmishes in Ukraine’s eastern regions as a pretext for an attack on the democracy, which has defied Moscow’s attempts to pull it back into its orbit.