FILE PHOTO: An SGX sign is pictured at Singapore Stock Exchange July 19, 2017. REUTERS/Edgar SuSINGAPORE: Singapore's stock market plunged more than 4 per cent on Thursday after the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic and the United States announced a 30-day ban on travel from Europe over the coronavirus.
But Trump's announcement of the 30-day ban, which excludes Britain, caused further selling, despite a series of measures intended to ease the financial pain of the outbreak, which has paralysed travel and hit businesses around the world. Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei ended the morning session down 5.17 per cent at 18,412.24, while the broader Topix was down 4.78 per cent at 1,318.96.The losses followed another brutal session on the US markets, with wave after wave of bad news, including Hilton withdrawing its earnings forecast and Boeing saying it would suspend most hiring and overtime pay.
Globally, about 126,000 have been infected with COVID-19 and more than 4,600 have died, according to a Reuters tally.