SYDNEY - Asian markets are set for another bumpy ride on Monday on fears about the hit to world growth from the rapidly spreading coronavirus, with all eyes on China where trading resumes following the Lunar New Year break.
Looking to head off a panic, China’s central bank plans to inject 1.2 trillion yuan of liquidity into the markets via reverse repo operations on Monday. “These initial interventions aim to boost confidence, but they are unlikely to be sufficient to curtail a sharp downturn in Q1,” Citi economists said in a note.
“The fact the China Securities Regulatory Commission has detailed they see the impact of the coronavirus as ‘short-lived’ is designed to instil confidence,” Weston said. “Whether the market feeds off this optimism is another thing given the spread of the virus is still in its exponential stage.” Monday’s decline in Asian equities follows a steep sell-off in global share markets, which, on Friday, posted their biggest weekly and monthly declines amid growing concerns about the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak in China. [MKTS/GLOB]Indicating a stable start for U.S. shares, E-Mini futures for the S&P500 opened a tad higher on Monday.
Nuk this CoronavirusOutbreak ....