* Asian stock markets : https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
* S&P 500 futures bounce 1% after Monday plunge
* Markets wary of pandemic risk, damage to world economy
* Nikkei pares early losses amid report of vaccine trials
* Bonds fly as investors wager on central bank, fiscal
stimulus
* Oil led commodities lower on demand fears
By Wayne Cole
SYDNEY, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Asian share markets were trying
to stabilise on Tuesday after a wave of early selling petered
out and Wall Street futures managed a solid bounce, allowing
investors to take a break from coronavirus fears.
Some dealers cited a Wall Street Journal report on a
possible vaccine as helping sentiment, though human tests of the
drug might not start until the end of April. Whatever the cause, E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 ESc1
bounced 1% to pare some of the steep 3.35% loss the cash index
.SPX suffered overnight.
South Korea's hard-hit market .KS11 edged up 0.8% and
helped MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside
Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS fight back to flat.
Japan's Nikkei .N225 was still down 2.8%, but just
catching up to the global sell-off having been shut on Monday.
Shanghai blue chips .CSI300 eased 0.7% but also off early
lows.
European and U.S. stocks had suffered their biggest loses
since mid-2016 amid fears the coronavirus was morphing into a
pandemic that could cripple global supply chains and wreak far
greater economic damage than first thought.
The risks were such that bond markets were wagering central
banks would have to ride to the rescue with new stimulus.
Futures for the Federal Reserve funds rate 0#FF: have
surged in the last few days to price in a 50-50 chance of a
quarter-point rate cut as early as April. In all, they imply
more than 50 basis points of reductions by year end.
Central banks across Asia have already been easing policy,
while governments have promised large injections of fiscal
stimulus, something western countries might also have to
consider.
The Dow .DJI had ended Monday down 3.55%, while the S&P
500 .SPX lost 3.35% and the Nasdaq .IXIC 3.71%. Wall
Street's fear gauge, the CBOE Volatility Index .VIX , jumped to
its highest close since early 2019.
Underlining the economic impact of the virus was a 3.5% drop
in Apple Inc AAPL.O as data showed sales of smartphones in
China tumbled by more than a third in January. BAY FOR RATE CUTS
The coronavirus death toll climbed to seven in Italy on
Monday and several Middle East countries were dealing with their
first infections, feeding worries it could turn into a
pandemic. "If travel restrictions and supply chain disruptions spread,
the impact on global growth could be more widespread and longer
lasting," said Jonas Glotermann at Capital Economics.
"While we still think that it would take a significant
deterioration in the outlook for the U.S. economy for
policymakers to cut rates, they may feel compelled to do so if
the virus spreads and leads to continued falls in the stock
market and inversion of the Treasury yield curve."
The rush to bonds left yields on 10-year Treasury notes
US10YT=RR at 1.40%, down almost 20 basis points in just three
sessions and paying less than overnight rates. Yields were now
rapidly approaching the all-time low of 1.321% hit in July 2016.
The sharp drop, combined with the simple fact the Fed had
far more room to cut rates than its peers, kept the U.S. dollar
restrained after a run of strong gains.
The euro edged up a little from recent three-year lows to
reach $1.0858 EUR= , while the dollar was back at 110.90 yen
JPY= and away from a 10-month top of 112.21. USD/
Against a basket of currencies, the dollar was all but
steady at 99.288 =USD .
Gold ran into profit-taking after hitting a seven-year peak
overnight, and was last at $1,649.80 an ounce XAU= . GOL/
Oil steadied after shedding nearly 4% on Monday. U.S. crude
CLc1 was up 22 cents at $51.65, while Brent crude LCOc1
firmed 28 cents to $56.58. O/R
Asia stock markets https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
Asia-Pacific valuations https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dr2BQA
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(Editing by Sam Holmes)