Stocks Fell as Coronavirus Cases Surpassed 10 Million

People all over the world hear or read about the coronavirus on a daily basis. For the last couple of months, coronavirus pandemic became the main topic of discussion. Moreover, it is hard to say for how long this virus will continue to affect the global economy. Unfortunately, coronavirus cases continue to rise and this is a serious challenge for the governments. Importantly, stocks in the Asia Pacific fell on Monday.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 dropped 2.3% to close at 21,995.04 as shares of index heavyweight Fast Retailing as well as Softbank Group fell more than 2% each. At the same time, the Topix index dropped 1.78% to end its trading day at 1,549.22

Moreover, South Korea’s Kospi index fell 1.93% to close at 2,093.48.

It is worth noting that mainland Chinese stocks declined on the day. For example, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.61% to about 2,961.52. In the meantime, the Shenzhen Component dropped 0.518% to around 11,752.36.

Also, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index decreased by 1.24% as of its final hour of trading, with shares of life insurer AIA fell 3.1%.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined 1.51% to close at 5,815.

Stocks and various factors

Let’s have a look at the economic data. Retail sales in Japan fell by 12.3% year-on-year in May, based on the information provided by the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry.

As stated above, the coronavirus pandemic continues to affect the economy. Investors are closely monitoring the situation to learn more about the situation. Globally, the number of infections surpassed 10 million. The U.S. has the highest number of cases.

Governments are willing to spend hundreds of billions of dollars to deal with the coronavirus crisis. However, it will take time to get the economy back on track. People should follow the instructions. Otherwise, it will be tough to overcome this crisis.