On this page, you will find our latest news and analysis of the Coronavirus, and how it is affecting the world’s financial markets.
Special Article: Revisiting SARS and How the New Coronavirus Outbreak Can Affect Financial Markets
In January 2019, news of a SARS-like coronavirus hit the newswires. It began in the Chinese province of Wuhan and is said to have come from animals. Its symptoms include a runny nose, cough, fever, and difficulty breathing. In more severe cases, it can lead to kidney failure and death. Officially the new virus is called 2019-nCoV, and it quickly infected over 800 people in less than two weeks. The death toll also rose from 3 to 25 in a matter of days. Countries outside of China soon began recording cases of the coronavirus from Japan, Thailand, South Korea, the US, and Australia.
To curb the spread of the disease, the Chinese government imposed a travel ban for the city of Wuhan. It was a bold move considering that Wuhan is a large city of 11 million people and is considered a significant transport hub. Soon after, eight more Chinese cities were limited from travel.
Consequently, the infection sparked public fears. It did not take long for that fear to affect financial markets. Among those adversely hit was the Hang Seng Index. The proximity of the financial hub to the epicenter took its toll on stocks in the retail, transportation, and property sectors. The Shanghai Composite Index initially benefitted from the news thanks to increased sales by pharmaceutical and mask-producing companies. However, risk aversion quickly caught on, and the Chinese stock index began trading lower.
On the other hand, safe-haven assets like gold and the Japanese yen saw increased demand as fears of the coronavirus mounted.
The recent surge in crude oil price has many starting to believe that the black gold may have turned a corner this year. 2020 has been a rough year as the coronavirus pandemic blew away demand and consigned sellers to stare at their overflowing oil vats in disbelief. But the...
Despite robust macroeconomic data from the US, the S&P 500 has eroded its initial rally posted at the open of the markets this Monday. This move was somewhat surprising, given the optimism surrounding the possibility of coronavirus vaccines being deployed as early as December. However, the indecision of the S&P […]
The Dow Jones Industrial Average looks set to arrest last week’s 4-day slump on the index with a bullish start to the week, buoyed by the renewed optimism from possible coronavirus vaccine approvals and upbeat macroeconomic data. The US Flash Manufacturing PMI, published by Markit, indicates that private sector business […]
Global stocks have started the week on a positive note as traders bet on a swift vaccination process. In Europe, DAX index and FTSE 100 futures have risen by 0.90% and 0.75% while in the United States, the Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 futures are up by more than 0.50% […]
Nasdaq 100 index is little changed today as the rotation to technology stocks intensifies. The index, which is made up of leading tech firms like Apple and Tesla, is trading at $11,984 in the futures market. In contrast, the Dow Jones and the S&P 500 index are down by 0.65% […]
The DAX index is wavering in the futures market as traders digest the impasse over EU funding, Brexit, and the rising coronavirus cases in Germany. The index, which is made up of the biggest 30 companies in Germany, is trading at €13,080 after it fell by more than 0.80% yesterday. […]
The FTSE 100 finds itself pegged back this Thursday following downbeat CBI Business Expectations data. CBI Industrial Order Expectations dropped from -34 to -40, which represented a worse-than-expected reading for a data set that was expected to have declined to -39. This report indicates a slump in UK manufacturing activity […]
