Stocks in Asia declined on Tuesday amid fears about the ongoing coronavirus outbreak that continues to spread.
Stocks in Asia
- South Korea’s Kospi dropped 3.09% to close at 2,176.72.
- In Japan, the Nikkei 225 shed 0.55% to close at 23,215.71 while the Topix index declined 0.6% to end its trading day at 1,692.28.
- Meanwhile, shares in Australia declined on the day, as the S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1.35% to 6,994.50.
- The Straits Times index in Singapore also fell 2.17% in afternoon trade.
- Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index was 0.81% lower.
- Markets in China and Hong Kong were closed on Tuesday for holidays.
Currencies
- The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was last at 97.954 after seeing levels below 97.6 last week.
- The Japanese yen, often seen as a safe-haven currency in times of economic uncertainty, traded at 109.04 against the dollar after seeing an earlier high of 108.81.
- The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6760 after touching an earlier low of $0.6744.
Oil Prices
- Oil prices were mixed in the afternoon of Asian trading hours, with international benchmark
- Brent crude futures slipping fractionally to $59.27 per barrel.
- U.S. crude futures, on the other hand, rose slightly to $53.17 per barrel.
Source: cnbc.com
