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| - European and US stock markets slumped heavily again Thursday as new coronavirus infections spread outside China. While the markets in Shanghai and Hong Kong both closed higher, Europe was a sea of red with London, Frankfurt, Paris and Milan all down by three percent or more in afternoon trading. New York opened with a drop of almost 2.0 percent, while Tokyo closed with a loss of 2.1 percent. Oil prices plunged between four and five percent, while the yen gained as traders turned to a traditional haven in times of economic turbulence. The euro gained almost 1.1 percent against the pound as EU and British representatives laid down their respective red lines in Brexit trade talks. "The stock market sell-off has picked up pace once more, with European markets... heavily in the red on continued fears of a global coronavirus pandemic," remarked IG trading group analyst Joshua Mahony. "What was a centralised focus on Italian containment efforts has now turned into a European-wide crisis as new cases pop up throughout the continent." President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday said that France was preparing for a jump in the number of coronavirus cases, adding "we are going to have to deal with it as best we can". Visiting staff at a Paris hospital where the first French person carrying the new coronavirus died Tuesday, Macron added: "We are facing a crisis, an epidemic that is coming." New cases cropped up across Europe, with Denmark and Estonia reporting their first ones Thursday. President Donald Trump on Wednesday sought to ease concerns, telling reporters that he did not think it "inevitable" that COVID-19 would continue to spread throughout the United States. But in Japan, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday told schools to close nationwide from Monday for several weeks to prevent the spread. Saudi Arabia banned pilgrims from visiting Islam's holiest sites to try to contain the deadly virus. Around 2,800 people have died in China and more than 80,000 have been infected. There have been more than 50 deaths and 3,600 cases in dozens of other countries, raising fears of a pandemic. Investors are growing increasingly fearful about the economic impact with major companies including Apple, Microsoft and drinks giant Diageo expecting sales to be hit. The virus continues to spread meanwhile, with new cases cropping up in countries from Brazil and Pakistan to Georgia and Norway. Shanghai's stock market nonetheless closed slightly higher as the virus appeared to be easing in China, while Hong Kong reversed earlier losses to end up 0.3 percent. Still, observers warned of worse to come for markets. "There is still so much more uncertainty around how coronavirus is going to spread, particularly in the US," said Katie Koch at Goldman Sachs Asset Management. The panic-selling has seen investors rush into haven investments, with the yield on 10-year and 30-year Treasuries around record lows, while oil is being hammered by concerns about plunging demand. London - FTSE 100: DOWN 3.4 percent at 6,803.22 points Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 3.4 percent at 12,341.48 Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 3.6 percent at 5,479.46 Milan - FTSE MIB: DOWN 3.0 percent at 22,469.46 EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 3.6 percent at 3,447.83 New York - Dow: DOWN 1.8 percent at 26,469.46 Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.1 percent at 21,948.23 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 0.3 percent at 26,778.62 (close) Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 2,991.33 (close) Dollar/yen: DOWN at 109.86 from 110.43 at 2200 GMT Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0984 from $1.0881 Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2880 from $1.2905 Euro/pound: UP at 85.22 pence from 84.32 pence Brent Crude: DOWN 4.2 percent at $50.61 per barrel West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 5.1 percent at $46.27 burs-wai/spm
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