Asian shares were poised for a weaker start on Tuesday, while oil prices fell, as investors worried a highly infectious new strain of COVID-19 that shut down much of Britain could lead to a slower economic recovery.
The question now is whether that stabilization seen during the U.S. market session will carry over to Asia, said Kyle Rodda, Market analyst, IG Markets. Countries across the globe shut their borders to Britain on Monday due to fears about a new strain of coronavirus, said to be up to 70per cent more transmissible than the original, causing travel chaos and raising the prospect of food shortages days before Britain is set to leave the European Union.The discovery of the new strain, just months before vaccines are expected to be widely available, renewed fears about the virus, which killed about 1.7 million people worldwide.