Asian markets were mixed Tuesday as bargain-buying after the previous day's bloodbath tempered fears that the coronavirus will develop into a pandemic and hammer the global economy.
News at the weekend that COVID-19 was now spreading and claiming lives far beyond China sparked a flood to safety on trading floors across the world, with the Dow on Wall Street suffering its worst day in two years.
With the death toll at around 2,700 and 80,000 infected, the World Health Organization said the outbreak had "peaked" in China but warned that all countries should prepare for a "potential pandemic".
"As the number of COVID-19 infections outside of China rises, investors are considering the potential ramification on the global economy beyond weaker growth in China and supply chain disruptions," JP Morgan Asset Management's Tai Hui said in a note.
"Equity markets will remain volatile in the near term, driven by new infection numbers around the world." Tokyo led losses as markets reopened to play catch-up with Monday's global sell-off.
The Nikkei ended more than three percent lower, while Sydney and Wellington each shed more than one percent and Shanghai dipped 0.6 percent. There were also losses in Bangkok and Jakarta.
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However, Hong Kong added 0.2 percent, while Seoul jumped 1.2 percent, having plunged almost four percent Monday in reaction to a spurt of infections in South Korea at the weekend. Singapore added 0.6 percent, Taipei rose 0.1 percent and Mumbai put on 0.3 percent.
"There is no question financial markets are coming round to the realisation that this particular crisis is likely to have a slightly longer shelf life than many thought was the case a couple of weeks ago," said CMC Markets UK analyst Michael Hewson in a note.
"However, flu outbreaks are hardly anything new. They happen every year and according to the World Health Organization flu kills up to 650,000 a year, yet markets are reacting to an outbreak that has so far only affected a fraction of that number."