In This Article:
* Asian stock markets : https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
* Markets price in risk of pandemic, deep damage to world economy
* Nikkei sheds 1,000 points, matching Dow's dive
* S&P 500 futures try to bounce after Monday plunge
* Bonds fly as investors wager on central bank, fiscal stimulus
* Oil leads commodities sharply lower on demand fears
By Wayne Cole
SYDNEY, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Asian shares extended losses on Tuesday amid fears the coronavirus was rapidly mutating into a pandemic that could cripple global supply chains and wreak far greater economic damage than first thought.
Both U.S. and European equities suffered their steepest losses since mid-2016, while demand concerns savaged prices for oil and a whole swathe of industrial commodities.
Sovereign bond yields dived as investors sought the most liquid of safe havens and wagered central banks would have to ride to the rescue with a burst of new stimulus.
"This is a world now where economies are so intertwined that it's hard to know what the economic impact will be," said Rodrigo Catrill, a currency strategist at NAB.
"It's certainly hard to see a catalyst that might stop the losses in the near term, though the market has moved aggressively to price in U.S. rate cuts as early as June."
Futures for the Federal Reserve funds rate have surged in the last few days to price in a better-than-even chance of a quarter-point rate cut in April. In all, they imply more than 50 basis points of reductions by year end.
Central banks across Asia have already been easing policy, while governments have promised large injections of fiscal stimulus, something western countries might have to consider.
For now, selling shares seemed to be the safe choice for investors and Japan's Nikkei shed 3.7% for the biggest daily drop since late 2018. The market was closed on Monday.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped another 0.2%, having already fallen 2.5% on Monday. Australia lost 1.8%, but South Korea's market was trying to stabilise.
E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 actually bounced 0.5%, having plunged overnight as the full implications of the virus' spread finally caught up with Wall Street.
The Dow ended Monday down 3.55%, while the S&P 500 lost 3.35% and the Nasdaq 3.71%. Wall Street's fear gauge, the CBOE Volatility Index, jumped to its highest close since early 2019.
Underlining the economic impact of the virus was a 3.5% drop in Apple Inc as data showed sales of smartphones in China tumbled by more than a third in January.