Europe and US markets slump as coronavirus fears threaten global slowdown

As the deadly coronavirus continues to spread in countries around the globe, European and US stock markets experienced a slump on February 27. The markets in Shanghai and Hong Kong closed higher and were not as severely hit by the fears of the coronavirus. Reports indicated that London, Frankfurt and Paris all showed losses of slightly more than 3 per cent.

Global markets hit hard

Wall Street did worse with a loss of more than 4 per cent. As per reports, this might become the US market's worst week since the financial crash in 2008. Oil prices reportedly fell more than four per cent at the day's lowest point but were able to recover a little before closing. The Japanese yen say a slight rise as traders began to view traditional haven's as a safe option during economic turbulence.

Over 2,500 people have died worldwide because of the deadly new coronavirus that originated in China's Hubei province late last year. The number of infected with the coronavirus that has been officially named COVID-19 by the World Health Organisation exceeds 80,000 worldwide.

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Trump blames the media

US President Donald Trump has accused two cable TV news channels of making the virus look much worse than it actually is and as a result upsetting financial markets. Trump made the accusation in a tweet that he uploaded on February 26. The US President's accusation comes just after public health officials had warned the United States to prepare for a likely outbreak.

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On February 25, the officials at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reportedly said that the global spread of the coronavirus across different nations had them worried about the virus eventually spreading in the United States. They did not specify when the outbreak may occur and how severe it would be.