European stocks rise, but Wall Street slumps due to coronavirus quarantine

European stock markets pushed higher Friday at end of ar volatile week as ECB unleashed fresh stimulus to boost ecomy as coronavirus grips continent, but Wall Street slumped as New York was placed under quarantine. In eurozone, markets jumped after European Central Bank and EU took unprecedented measures to prop up ir ecomies as confinement measures to slow spre of coronavirus causes massive disruptions to businesses.

Paris ended day with a gain of five percent and Frankfurt nearly four per cent. London's stock market won only 0.8 per cent as an anticipated new UK state stimulus plan failed to materialise. US stocks failed to hold onto early solid gains as state officials ordered n-essential businesses to close in country's financial capital New York City from Sunday evening.

" stock markets' upside is a result of a number of big bazookas fired off by central banks," Scope Markets analyst James Hughes told AFP, before sounding a te of grim caution.

" markets hate uncertainty -- and we could t be in a more uncertain time," he ded in reference to COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than 10,000 people around world.

Coronavirus threatens to engulf whole of Europe after it emerged Thursday that eurozone member Italy has overtaken China's death total -- and is w braced for an extended lockdown. On Friday, ECB took its latest measure, freeing up banks to allow m to issue as much as 1.8 trillion euros in fresh loans. That follows a 750-billion-euro ($820-billion) stimulus pack designed to help virus-wracked ecomies by buying extra government and corporate bonds.

Meanwhile, EU moved to suspend its strict rules on public deficits to allow governments to open money taps to face coronavirus pandemic. In US, lawmakers moved forward on a $1-trillion emergency relief pack to combat turmoil, with $1,200 cash handouts for individuals. It also includes $208 billion in loans for companies hit by crisis -- $58 billion of it for battered airline sector -- and $300 billion in small business loans.

That comes on top of Federal Reserve interest rate cuts and pledges worth hundreds of billions of dollars to provide liquidity to creaking financial markets, including a fresh move Friday to help municipal bond market. But Wall Street could t hold onto early gains after New York state joined California, which if considered separately is world's fifth-largest ecomy, in ordering people to remain home.

"n-essential businesses will close ir doors in New York as a way of tacking health crisis," said market analyst David Mden at CMC Markets UK. "Trers are terrified this will be anunced in or parts of country too." Oil markets failed to extend a rebound following a directive from US President Donald Trump to top up Strategic Petroleum Reserve to its maximum capacity by buying a total of 77 million barrels from US producers.

Brent fell back below $30 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate tumbled more than 10 percent at one point to under $23 per barrel. Oil prices are down more than 50 percent this year as measures to contain coronavirus have hit demand and producers Saudi Arabia and Russia are locked in a price war.

"Oversupply fears in dition to demand woes are likely to hang over energy market," said CMC Markets UK's Mden.