TOKYO (Reuters) – U.S. stock futures and several Asian shares fell in choppy trade on Wednesday, as worries about the coronavirus pandemic eclipsed hopes broad policy support would combat the economic fallout of the outbreak.
FILE PHOTO: A passerby wearing a protective face mask, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, walks past an electronic board showing the graphs of the recent movements of Japan’s Nikkei share average outside a brokerage in Tokyo, Japan March 6, 2020. REUTERS/Issei Kato
Most traditional safe-haven assets were also under pressure as battered investors looked to unwind their damaged positions, leading to wide discrepancies between various markets.
In Asia, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dipped 0.3%, led by a 4.9% fall in Australia while Japan’s Nikkei gained 1.6%.
U.S. stock futures fell 3% in Asia, a day after the S&P 500 rose 6% and Dow Jones rose 5.2% or 1,049 points.
“A rise of 1,000 points in Dow is something you see only during a financial crisis. It is not a good sign,” said Tomoaki Shishido, senior fixed income strategist at Nomura Securities.
“A rise of 100 points would much better for the economy.”
Wild swings in markets imply the capacity of various players, from speculators to brokerages, to absorb risks has been tormented, analysts s