Stocks near one-month low as western sanctions on Russia loom

World stocks traded near a one-month low on Monday and the dollar and German bonds held firm as investors worried about the economic impact of possible western sanctions on Moscow after Crimea voted to separate from Ukraine

William Hague, British Foreign Minister  said that he expects EU ministers to agree sanctions including travel bans and asset freezes against Russian and Crimean individuals following Sunday's referendum.

Investors are worried that sanctions, which are likely to hit Russia's already flagging economy, may also weigh on European companies that are exposed to Russia. "The market to some extent expects sanctions now. It depends on what kind of sanctions and (Russia's) reaction to the sanctions to see if we can talk of a de-escalation of the crisis or not," said Piet Lammens, a KBC strategist in Brussels.

On the other hand, the benchmark for euro zone borrowing costs, were flat at 1.55 per cent. US  Treasury yields stood at 2.6795 per cent and later fell down  to 2.6450 per cent on Friday.

The Fed also said that its holdings of U.S. securities kept for overseas central banks fell by $106.142 billion in the week ended March 12, to stand at $3.206 trillion, bringing the total on deposit with the Fed to the lowest level since December 2012.

China's yuan eased against the dollar after the central bank in Beijing doubled the currency's daily trading band as part of its commitment to liberalize the market. Yet the currency moved in a relatively narrow range, reflecting market views that the People's Bank of China will seek to limit currency swings at a time when markets fret over China's cooling growth and the quality of corporate debt.