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Asia Markets: Asian markets fall as pandemic impact weighs

Asian markets mostly fell in early trading Thursday, as concerns about the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on the global economy continued to be felt. Read More...

Asian markets mostly fell in early trading Thursday, as concerns about the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on the global economy continued to be felt.

Japan’s Nikkei NIK, -1.45% dropped 1.2% while South Korea’s Kospi 180721, -0.35% declined 0.6% as trading resumed following a holiday Wednesday for parliamentary elections, which the ruling Democratic Party won handily. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index HSI, -0.80% slipped 0.6% while the Shanghai Composite SHCOMP, -0.16% was about flat. Benchmark indexes in Singapore STI, -0.04% , Malaysia FBMKLCI, +0.06%, Taiwan Y9999, -0.34% and Indonesia JAKIDX, -2.66% declined. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 XJO, -1.01% fell 1.4%, as jobless numbers in March came in better than expected, though April numbers are expected to be much worse, once the impact of coronavirus-related shutdowns are taken into effect.

Stocks on Wall Street ended lower Wednesday after disappointing earnings reports and dismal economic data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -1.86% fell 445.41 points, or 1.9%, to close at 23,504.35. The Nasdaq Composite COMP, -1.43% sank 122.56 points, or 1.4%, to 8,393.18. The S&P 500 SPX, -2.20% dropped 62.70 points, or 2.2%, to end at 2,783.36.

Benchmark U.S. crude CLK20, +0.55% gained after falling Wednesday to its lowest price since 2002. Brent crude BRNM20, +1.66% , the global standard, also rose.

The dollar USDJPY, +0.52% rose to 107.87 yen.

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