It was a tough day for stocks in the Asia Pacific. One day earlier the International Monetary Fund (IMF) decided to change its economic forecast once again. This decision had a negative impact on stocks.
For example, shares in Australia led losses among the region’s major markets. The S&P/ASX 200 fell 2.48% to close at 5,817.70.
Moreover, South Korea’s Kospi index also fell on Thursday. The index dropped 2.27% to end its trading day at 2,112.37.
Let’s have a look at the Japanese stocks. The Nikkei 225 fell 1.22% to close at 22,259.79. At the same time, the Topix index dropped 1.18% to close at 1,561.85.
The shares of Olympus in Japan jumped 11.15% on Thursday. On Wednesday, Olympus signed a memorandum of understanding with investment fund Japan Industrial Partners. The company plans to sell its camera division to this investment fund.
Interestingly, the Straits Times index in Singapore fell 1.55% in afternoon trade.
It is worth noting that markets in China as well as Hong Kong were closed on Thursday for holiday.
International Monetary Fund and stocks 
As mentioned above the International Monetary Fund slashed its economic forecasts. According to the latest data, the fund expects that the global gross domestic product (GDP) to contract by 4.9% in 2020.
Based on the information provided by the IMF, the coronavirus pandemic created more problems in the first half of 2020 than anticipated. Moreover, it will take more time to recover from this crisis. The coronavirus pandemic is a serious challenge for the global economy.
U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 710.16 points or 2.7% to close at 25,445.94. Moreover, the S&P 500 finished its trading day 2.6% lower 3,050.33. Also, the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.2% to close at 9,909.17. Importantly, it was the worst day for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq since June 11.
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