LONDON: The euro fell and safe-haven bond markets in the euro area rallied on Wednesday, after Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the West of engaging in nuclear blackmail against Russia.

The euro fell to as low $0.9885 and was last down 0.7% on the day. Safe-haven bonds rallied, pushing yields down.

The two-year German bond yield was last down 7 basis points on the day at 1.66%.

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In a speech announcing a partial mobilisation for the country’s military campaign in Ukraine, Putin also said that Russia had “lots of weapons to reply” to what he called Western threats and said that he was not bluffing.