Musk threatens Apple with legal action over App Store bias towards OpenAI
* Asian stock markets: https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
* Financial markets trying to shake off virus woes
* Equities draw investors on hopes for more China stimulus
* Oil markets worried about demand disruptions
By Stanley White
TOKYO, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Asian stocks steadied on Wednesday
on hopes of additional Chinese stimulus to lessen the economic
impact of a coronavirus outbreak, but risks remain as the
illness continues to spread and the death toll neared 500.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
.MIAPJ0000PUS was up 0.3%. Australian shares .AXJO were up
0.58%, while Japan's Nikkei stock index .N225 rose 1.19%.
The safe-haven yen and Swiss franc nursed losses versus the
dollar while the yuan held on to gains in offshore trade in a
tentative sign of improvement in risk appetite as investors
monitor the impact of the virus.
Oil prices, however, remained weak on worries about a
long-term dent in demand for energy and other commodities
despite hopes for more output cuts from OPEC and its allies.
China and other countries have imposed travel restrictions
to try to contain a new virus that emerged in the central
Chinese city of Wuhan late last year, slamming the breaks on
manufacturing and tourism in the world's second-largest economy.
Many investors argue that any slowdown will be temporary and
that Chinese policy steps are reason to remain optimistic about
the growth outlook, but so far public health officials have not
found a way to stop the spread of the virus both inside and
outside of China.
"We're going to have a strong day in Asia, but whether this
is the reversal of a downtrend remains to be seen," said Michael
McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney.
"Oil investors remain pessimistic about demand disruptions,
but equity investors, especially overseas, are discounting the
impact of the virus."
U.S. stock futures ESc1 fell 0.18% in Asia on Wednesday.
The S&P 500 .SPX rose 1.5% on Tuesday and the tech-heavy
Nasdaq .IXIC rose to a record high.
The People's Bank of China (PBOC) is likely to lower its key
lending rate - the loan prime rate - on Feb. 20, and cut banks'
reserve requirement ratios in the coming weeks, policy sources
told Reuters. The PBOC has already pumped hundreds of billions of dollars
into the financial system this week. This helped Chinese stocks
stabilise on Tuesday following a rout that wiped out around $700
billion in market capitalisation on Monday when Chinese markets
opened after an extended holiday.
The virus has already claimed nearly 500 lives. Japan's
health minister said on Wednesday 10 people on a cruise ship at
the port of Yokohama have tested positive for the new virus.
In the currency market, the yen JPY=EBS traded at 109.46
per dollar, close to the lowest in almost a week. The Swiss
franc CHF=EBS held steady at 0.9635 versus the dollar
following a 0.3% decline on Tuesday.
In the offshore market, the yuan CNH=D3 traded at 6.9898
per dollar after rising on Tuesday for the first time in five
trading sessions.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields US10YT=RR extended gains
in Asia, rising to 1.6043% in another sign of receding concern
about the coronavirus.
U.S. crude CLc1 ticked up 0.12% to $49.67 a barrel in Asia
but remained below the psychologically important $50 a barrel
mark.
U.S. oil futures have lost 14.8% since China confirmed on
Jan. 21 that human-to-human infection of the previously unknown
virus is possible, which kicked of a rout in global markets as
the number of cases and the death toll rose.