by Tom Westbrook and Herbert Lash, Thomson Reuters
Sprott Money
SINGAPORE/NEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) – Asian equities fell for a second session on Thursday, after a dire warning about the U.S. coronavirus death toll had investors looking to the safety of dollars and bonds and bracing for more bad news from U.S. jobless figures.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.2%. Japan’s Nikkei extended Wednesday’s heavy drop with a 1.5% fall, and investors are beginning to worry that equities may re-test last month’s lows.
Markets in Hong Kong, Sydney, Shanghai and Seoul fell, though futures for the S&P 500 bounced following Wall Street’s 4% plunge overnight.
“Difficult days are ahead for our nation,” U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday.