Major stock markets in Asia trimmed their early losses on Monday as business in China returned to work after an extended Lunar New Year holiday due to ongoing virus outbreak. At the same time, investors remained nervous as the death toll from the outbreak climbed, with over 900 fatalities as of Sunday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended 142 points lower or 0.6% at 23,686, after falling more than 8% earlier. The KOSPI in South Korea fell 11 points or 0.5% to end at 2,201, after declining around 0.7% earlier. In Hong Kong, Hang Seng index lost 296 points or 0.8% to 27,198, at around 03:26 PM Hong Kong time, after falling nearly 1%. Meanwhile, the Shanghai Composite in China rose 15 points or 0.5% to 2,890, at around 03:20 PM China time. Monday’s losses in Asia extended from Wall Street on Friday.
