* Asian stock markets : https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
* Asian shares fall after Friday's losses on Wall Street
* Chinese authorities make plans for businesses, schools to
reopen
* Singapore raises alert level on China travel
By Swati Pandey
SYDNEY, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Stocks and oil fell while
safe-haven gold rose on Monday as the death toll from a
coronavirus outbreak surpassed the SARS epidemic, raising alarm
bells about its severity.
As many as 908 people have so far died in China's central
Hubei province as of Sunday with most of the new deaths in the
provincial capital of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
.MIAPJ0000PUS stumbled 0.7% to be on track for its second
straight day of loss. Japan's Nikkei .N225 fell 0.8% while
South Korea's KOSPI .KS11 was off 1.4% and Australian shares
eased 0.5% .AXJO .
The losses extended from Wall Street on Friday where the Dow
.DJI fell 0.9%, the S&P 500 .SPX declined 0.5% while the
Nasdaq .IXIC dropped 0.5%. E-mini futures for S&P 500 ESc1
were down 0.3% on Monday.
"Expect markets to be sensitive to virus headlines. In this
environment, we favour defensive positioning," ANZ economists
wrote in a note.
"Markets will be sensitive to coronavirus news, as factories
and ports in China reopen. The extent to which that is
achievable will indicate the level of ongoing disruption," they
added.
As Chinese authorities made plans for millions of people
returning to work after an extended Lunar New Year break a large
number of workplaces and schools are still likely to remain
closed and many white-collar employees will work from home.
Worries about the hit to the world's second-largest economy
has hurt investor risk appetite though confidence in China's
ability to contain the epidemic has prevented sharp losses.
China's central bank has taken a raft of measures to support
the economy, including reducing interest rates and flushing the
market with liquidity. From Monday, it will provide special
funds for banks to re-lend to businesses working to combat the
virus.
Despite the measures, many of China's usually teeming cities
have almost become ghost towns as authorities ordered virtual
lockdowns, cancelled flights, closed factories and shut schools.
On Friday, Singapore raised its coronavirus alert level and
reported more cases not linked to previous infections or travel
to China. An advance team of international experts led by the World
Health Organization (WHO) left for Beijing to help investigate
the epidemic, the Geneva-based agency said on Sunday.
The virus has dominated broader market sentiment with
better-than-expected U.S. jobs data on Friday failing to lift
sentiment.
Non-farm payrolls increased by 225,000 jobs in January, with
employment at construction sites increasing by the most in a
year amid milder-than-normal temperatures, the Labor Department
said. Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury notes US10YT=RR ticked
higher to push yields down to 1.5645%.
Euro zone bond yields fell after German industrial output
tumbled in December to notch its biggest fall since January
2009, fanning concerns about the bloc's biggest economy.
The euro EUR= held near four-month lows at $1.0950.
The dollar slipped against the yen to be on track for a
second straight day of losses. It was last at 109.61 yen. JPY=
The Australian dollar AUD=D3 , considered a liquid proxy
for China plays, briefly hit an 11-year low of $0.6679. It fell
0.2% last week to clock its six straight weekly loss.
That left the dollar index .DXY flat at 98.662.
Oil prices slipped as Russia said it would need more time
before committing to output cuts along with the Organization of
the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers amid
falling demand for crude as China battles the coronavirus.
Since Jan. 17, oil prices have fallen by 14% while copper
has is down around 10%.
Brent crude LCOc1 futures declined 52 cents to $53.95 a
barrel, while U.S. crude CLc1 futures slipped 45 cents to
$49.87 a barrel.
U.S. gold futures GCv1 added 0.3% at $1,577.5 an ounce.
Spot gold XAU= was higher at $1,574.4.
Asia stock markets https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
Asia-Pacific valuations https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dr2BQA
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(Editing by Sam Holmes)