Global shares decline on virus upsurge

Asian stocks and Wall Street futures plunged on Thursday as surging coronavirus cases seen in the United States and China dampened market mood. This also underscored a longer recovery period for the global economy.

S&P 500 mini futures declined, shedding a total of 1.2% during its early Asian session. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan also lost as much as 1% while Japan’s Nikkei fell 1.3%. In mainland China, blue-chip shares recorded a 0.1% loss during early trade.

On Wall Street, S&P 500 plunged 0.36% on Wednesday. However, tech-heavy Nasdaq.IXIC managed to advance with a 0.15% increase. This could be attributed to the growing optimism of increased demand for online services due to the virus crisis.