European stock markets and oil prices were higher Tuesday, but off the day's best levels on tempered hopes of a concerted global response to the deadly coronavirus, while Wall Street even slipped into the red.
Central bank pledges of action initially boosted shares that were hammered last week as major global stock markets lost around 12 per cent in value.
But an eagerly-awaited conference call of G7 finance ministers left traders and analysts underwhelmed by a statement which said only that they would use "all appropriate policy tools" to keep the virus epidemic from throttling economic growth.
"Investors were not particularly impressed with the loose commitments coming from the G7 conference call," said OANDA Europe senior analyst Craig Erlam in comments that summed up the general reaction.
In New York, the Dow Jones and S&P 500 indices both slipped by 0.7 per cent as trading got underway on Tuesday, after the Dow leapt by more than five per cent the previous day, its biggest one-day percentage gain since 2009.
On energy markets, oil prices nonetheless gained more than two percent in afternoon London exchanges, with dealers betting on major producers cutting output to address a predicted plunge in crude demand.
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Back on the stock markets, Shanghai and Sydney closed up 0.7 per cent, while Seoul put on 0.6 per cent. Tokyo, however, fell 1.2 per cent.
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index was up 1.8 per cent, with a similar level in Paris, while Frankfurt had gained 2.1 per cent a couple of hours before trading ended.
After last week's rout, investors began to put money back into the market as central banks from the US, Japan and Europe said they were ready to provide support with monetary easing such as interest rate cuts and cash injections to financial markets.
Ahead of the G7 conference call, Australia cut borrowing costs to a record low 0.50 per cent and indicated it was ready to provide more help, making it the first major economy to take such measures.
Malaysia also announced a cut on Tuesday.
The Bank of England will meanwhile "take all necessary steps" to support the UK economy from coronavirus fallout, said governor Mark Carney.
"The Bank of England's role is to help UK businesses and households manage through an economic shock that could prove large but will ultimately be temporary," Carney said.
The deadly outbreak has shaken economic activity, with an index of Chinese factory activity falling to a record low last month, while a US survey of manufacturers came in below forecast, with expectations of worse to come.
And with demand for crude tipped to take a battering -- particularly from crucial consumer China -- OPEC is to hold an extraordinary meeting on Thursday with other producers, led by Russia, to weigh its response.
The disease that began in China has killed more than 3,100 people and infected more than 91,000.
China has now reported an increase in cases coming from abroad.