Asian stock markets were mixed Thursday after a turbulent day on Wall Street as traders tried to forecast the impact of the coronavirus’s omicron variant.
Tokyo and Sydney fell while Hong Kong and Seoul advanced. Shanghai was unchanged.
Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index ended down 1.2% on Wednesday after gaining 1.9% earlier in the day. That was despite surveys showing US hiring and factory activity in November were better than expected.
Markets were sliding when the White House announced the discovery of the first omicron case in the United States. It is unclear whether omicron is more dangerous than other variants, but governments have responded by tightening travel controls, fuelling unease about the outlook for a global economic recovery.
The latest data painted an optimistic picture for economic conditions, but that seems to be taking a backseat as the omicron variant can potentially shift the landscape, Yeap Jun Rong of IG said in a report.
The Shanghai Composite Index .
Tokyo and Sydney fell while Hong Kong and Seoul advanced. Shanghai was unchanged.
Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index ended down 1.2% on Wednesday after gaining 1.9% earlier in the day. That was despite surveys showing US hiring and factory activity in November were better than expected.
Markets were sliding when the White House announced the discovery of the first omicron case in the United States. It is unclear whether omicron is more dangerous than other variants, but governments have responded by tightening travel controls, fuelling unease about the outlook for a global economic recovery.
The latest data painted an optimistic picture for economic conditions, but that seems to be taking a backseat as the omicron variant can potentially shift the landscape, Yeap Jun Rong of IG said in a report.
The Shanghai Composite Index .