Asia stocks slip after WHO labels outbreak a pandemic
Alice Woodhouse reports from Hong Kong
Asia-Pacific stock markets slid on Thursday following sharp falls on Wall Street after the World Health Organization labelled the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic for the first time.
In WHO terms, a pandemic means the disease is spreading rapidly in several different parts of the world.The WHO designation came on Wednesday as the number of cases surged to 118,000 in 114 countries, with 4,291 deaths.
The Topix was down 2.4 per cent in early trading in Japan while the Kospi slipped 1 per cent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 2.8 per cent
The moves in Asia come after the Dow in the US tumbled 5.9 per cent, taking it to a fall of more than 20 per cent from a recent high, making it a bear market. The S&P 500 shed 4.9 per cent to end just short of a bear market.
S&P 500 futures were down 0.4 per cent. So-called haven the Japanese yen was steady and gold was 0.6 per cent higher at $1,644 and ounce, while the yield on the 10-year US Treasury was hovering at 0.8377 per cent.
Source: Economy - ft.com
