Asian shares fall on fears virus outbreaks are rebounding
TOKYO (AP) — Shares were mostly lower in Asia on Monday on concern over a resurgence of coronavirus cases and pessimism after Wall Street posted its worst week in nearly three months.
Benchmarks in Tokyo, Sydney and Shanghai fell after China reported an outbreak of new infections in Beijing and reimposed precautions to prevent it from spreading.
Stocks are turning wobbly as investors re-evaluate their expectations for economic growth, which many skeptics have been saying were overly optimistic.
Case numbers are still growing in various nations, including emerging economies, and without a vaccine, relaxing lockdowns and reopening travel could bring on further waves of COVID-19 cases.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 dropped 3.5% to finish at 21,530.95. South Korea's Kospi slipped 4.8% to 2,030.82. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 shed 2.2% to 5,719.80. Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid 2.2% to 23,775.37, while the Shanghai Composite edged down 0.9% to 2,892.94.
The future for the S&P 500 lost 2.8% and that for the Dow industrials slipped 3.2%, auguring a weak start for the week on Wall Street.
“Once again, the pandemic has triggered cause for fear and doubt about the road ahead,” Hayaki Narita at Mizuho Bank said in a commentary.
Rising COVID-19 cases in Latin American and parts of Asia, re-emerging “second wave” risks in parts of the U.S., South Korea and China and so-called “cluster” cases in Japan were adding to worries, he said.
The illness has continued to spread in countries that make up about 60% of the global GDP, noted Robert Carnell, regional head of research Asia-Pacific at ING.
“If globally, we are still in wave 1, then it is possible that without a vaccine, the big-wave is still lying out there somewhere waiting to hit,” he said.
Still, economists...
