Stocks in Asia were mixed on Thursday as concerns over the scale of the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic continued to weigh on sentiment.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index dropped 259.89 points, or 1.3%, to 19,290.20, as shares of robot maker Fanuc declined 2.7%.
The Japanese yen traded at 107.81 per U.S. dollar, as compared to levels above 108 seen earlier in the week.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index stepped backward 138.89 points, or 0.6%, to 24,006.45.
Australian markets went down, as Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac declined.
In the economic data front, Australia’s unemployment rate in March came in at 5.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to data from the country’s bureau of statistics. That was better than expectations of a 5.5% unemployment rate for the month in an economist poll.
Still, the Australian statistics bureau cautioned that the data on March employment covered just the first two weeks of the month — before lockdown measures to contain the coronavirus spread kicked in.
The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6288 after declining from levels above $0.64 yesterday.
Globally, more than two million people have been infected by the virus while at least 133,354 lives have been taken, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
In other markets
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 added 5.02 points, or 0.1%, to 3,802.38
In Korea, the Kospi index returned from an election day off to finish flat at 1,857.07.
In Taiwan, the Taiex Index lost 71.73 points, or 0.7%, to 10,375.48
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index regained 6.69 points, or 0.3%, to 2,612.25.
In Australia, the ASX 200 lost 50.39 points, or 0.9%, to 5,416.28
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 gained 63.25, or 0.6%, to 10,473.19.
