Global trade markets are tense in the face of the novel coronavirus (nCoV) which has spread through parts of China and is hitting transport and trade networks.
Investors are nervous as they wait to see if the virus can be contained or whether the World Health Organization (WHO) declares an international health emergency.
Russ Mould, investment director at the stockbroker AJ Bell, was quoted in the UK’s Guardian newspaper, saying, “The market is back in panic mode about China’s coronavirus. An extended lunar New Year holiday is nothing to celebrate for China, instead it represents an escalation of attempts to contain the deadly virus by restricting travel and locking down major cities.”
That lock down will hamper the movement of goods and trade in general in a period that is traditionally slow anyway. Shipping lines and freight forwarders have yet to react formally to the nCoV emergency, but with the province of Wuhan preventing vessel movements and reports that the virus is spreading it is very likely that more blank sailings will result.
Already, stock markets around the globe have fallen as fears of a fall out from the spreading novel coronavirus have hit trade, with all the major Asian, US and European markets declining with the exception of Hong Kong’s Hang Seng exchange, which showed a modest gain.
Reuters reported that in excess of 97% of stocks in the STOXX 600 were trading negatively, “with many toppling from record highs, wiping out around €180 (US$198.5) billion of market capitalization from the European share index.” Similar reports were coming from the US markets and the price of oil also showed signs of decline, falling around US$1/barrel for both Brent Crude and West Texas Intermediate.
Nick Savvides
Managing Editor
