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Lukoil (OTCPK:LUKOY), Russia's second largest oil producer and whose shares listed in London have lost 99% of their value this week, has called for a halt to fighting in Ukraine, making it one of Russia's first major companies to speak out against the invasion.
The company is facing calls for a boycott in the U.S., where there are 230 Lukoil gasoline stations mostly in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
New Jersey's largest city, Newark, recently voted to suspend the licenses of two Lukoil gas stations because of the company's ties to Russia, but the stations are owned by American franchisees and not directly owned by the Russian company.
The confusion is similar to a handful of other brands confused as being Russian, including Smirnoff vodka, whose origins are in Russia but the company is owned by U.K. British spirits firm Diageo (DEO -2.6%) and is manufactured in Illinois.
Lukoil recently reported its highest annual profit in at least seven years, rising to 773.4B rubles ($7.06B) in 2021 from 15.2B rubles a year earlier on sales of 9.435T rubles compared with 5.64T in 2020.
Stoxx, which operates Deutsche Boerse's Qontigo indices, this week said it plans to remove Lukoil and 60 other Russian companies from its indices.