Market meltdown and the virus

As valuations come into a more sensible range, take a deep breath and hold your nerve

What a month it has been for global financial markets! We have just seen the steepest decline ever into bear market territory for global equity markets (less than 20 days), the steepest rise in US treasuries and the steepest single-day fall in oil prices, all in the last few weeks. Fear and volatility are all pervasive. Financial markets are dislocated. The volatility index, the market gauge of fear, has now hit the second highest level ever, just below the peak seen in 2008.

What started out as being seen as a regional crisis, largely confined to China, has now quickly morphed