“The outbreak of the new coronavirus in China is generating fear and unsettling markets. Nearly 60 million people in one of China’s largest cities are in lockdown and new cases are emerging around the world daily, adding to concerns about the human and economic impact of the new virus…
“China’s economy, weighed down by the trade conflict with the US and China’s own attempts to reign in some of the excesses and excessive leverage within its economy, has slowed to its lowest growth rate in three decades. Last year it grew at only 6.1 per cent whereas in 2002 the economy was growing at around 10 per cent.
“Hong Kong, of course, is in severe recession from the impact of the violent mass political protests…
“Whatever the ultimate impact of the coronavirus on China, it will be magnified by the location of the outbreak. Wuhan, one of China’s largest and most important cities, is the capital city of Hubei Province, a key manufacturing, transport and logistics hub.”
“The yen rose and the yuan fell in offshore trade on Monday as the death toll in China from the spread of a pneumonia-like virus mounted, raising worries authorities are struggling to contain the outbreak and sparking a bout of risk aversion.”
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/27/forex-markets-coronavirus-outbreak-in-focus.html
“Oil futures ended sharply lower Friday on fears the spread of the coronavirus in China elsewhere will undercut demand for crude, which had seen prices already under pressure due to worries about a potential oversupply.”
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