Fresh sanctions on Russia cause treasury yields to decrease.

• Since Russia invaded Ukraine on Thursday morning, investors have been flocking to safe haven investments such as U.S. government bonds.
• Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is due to testify before Congress this week.

On Monday morning, the U.S. Treasury yields decreased, with investors keeping a close eye on the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

In afternoon trading, the yield on the benchmark dropped by nearly 12 basis points to 1.868%, while the 30-year Treasury yield decreased by nearly 10 basis points to 2.199%. Yields move inversely with prices, meaning that a 1 basis point increase is equivalent to a 0.01% decrease in yield.

Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia on Thursday morning, investors have been flocking to safe haven investments such as U.S. government bonds, causing yields to decrease.

Over the weekend, Russia advanced further into Ukraine as its military vehicles entered the second-largest city of Kharkiv, resulting in fighting and residents being advised to take shelter.

On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin raised the alert level of his country's nuclear deterrence forces amid increasing global condemnation of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. However, despite the escalation, representatives from Ukraine and Russia have agreed to meet on the Ukraine-Belarus border with no preconditions.

Russia is facing additional sanctions from its Western allies, including the removal of key banks from the SWIFT interbank messaging system.

On Monday, Russia's central bank increased its key interest rate to 20% as its currency reached a new low against the dollar due to new sanctions.

Jerome Powell, the Federal Reserve Chairman, will testify before Congress on Wednesday and Thursday for the central bank's semiannual monetary policy report. Investors will closely monitor his testimonies to gauge how the Russia-Ukraine crisis may impact the Fed's plans for raising interest rates and tightening monetary policy.

The outlook for Fed policy is less certain now than before the conflict in Ukraine, according to strategists from Charles Schwab. While inflation may remain high or increase due to the commodity supply shock, commodity price shocks often decrease demand and slow growth in the long term.

The Chicago Business Barometer from the Institute for Supply Management decreased more than anticipated in February, despite a slight decrease in prices paid by producers.

— bizfocushub.com staff contributed to this market report.