HSI Drops As Impact Of Virus Weighs Down Asia

Hong Kong stocks finished down on Thursday after a negative cue from Wall Street and with investors worried about the ongoing economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Hang Seng Index dropped 0.6 percent, to close at 24,006.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.3 percent, to close at 2,819.

And the Shenzhen Composite Index ended 0.5 percent, higher at 1,744.

The woes on Wall Street discouraged traders in Asia, where Tokyo closed down 1.3 percent, and Sydney lost 0.9 percent and Taipei shed 0.7 percent.

Seoul was flat, while Singapore was up 0.7 percent.

There was more bad news on oil markets, with the International Energy Agency warning that 2020 was likely to be "the worst year in the history" of the sector.

Oil has plummeted in recent weeks to multi-year lows as coronavirus lockdowns depressed demand, and the crisis was made worse by a pricing war between top producers Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Riyadh, Moscow and other producers agreed to an output cut but investors are worried that the dramatic production curbs will not be enough to stabilise the crude market.

Brent Crude was down 0.4 percent, while West Texas Intermediate was up 0.6 percent but still just under the US$20-a-barrel mark. (AFP)