SYDNEY - Stock markets and the US dollar fell heavily on Monday , after emergency rate cuts in the United States and New Zealand failed to allay fears about the coronavirus' economic shock.
The Nikkei lost 1.3 per cent, Australia's benchmark stock index was down 5.4 per cent, off an earlier 7 per cent loss. South Korea's Kospi index opened down 1.6 per cent.The US Federal Reserve slashed interest rates by 100 basis points on Sunday to a target range of 0 per cent to 0.25 per cent. It said it would expand its balance sheet by at least US$700 billion in coming weeks.
" must really be scared. To do that in one fell swoop is really quite shocking," said Robert Pavlik, chief investment strategist at Slatestone Wealth LLC in New York. The swap lines were set up by the Fed, the Bank of Canada, European Central Bank, Bank of England, Bank of Japan and Swiss National Bank in the financial crisis. They also agreed to offer three-month credit in US dollars on a regular basis and at a rate cheaper than usual.