The fast-moving coronavirus isn’t just confounding health officials. It’s also bedevilling policymakers and central bankers who are struggling to assess the economic damage from an outbreak that’s reached 37 countries and territories, infected 80,000 people and killed 2,700 worldwide. They don’t know where or how fast the virus will spread. They can’t draw on clear […]
The virus outbreak in China has put South Korea’s economy into an “emergency situation,” its president says. Japan is on the brink of recession and big manufacturers are forecasting a whole world of woe. As many Chinese finally go back to work after their longest Lunar New Year holiday ever, the economic fallout from the […]
North American stock markets marched to record highs Thursday on dissipating virus risks and China saying it would cut tariffs on U.S. imports in half. After two risk-on days, investors have sunk more money into defensive sectors such as telecommunications, consumer staples, real estate investment trusts, gold and utilities in both Canada and the U.S. […]
China’s markets are reeling from the economic ramifications of the coronavirus. With more foreign institutional investor capital allocated to the region than ever before, investors can do little else but wait to see whether the outbreak will merely cause a blip on their trading screens or if the virus will continue to spread. On Monday […]
The Shanghai Composite index tumbled nearly eight per cent on Monday as Chinese regulators moved to stabilize markets jolted by a virus that has spread to more than 20 countries, slamming regional tourism and threatening global growth. The outbreak of the virus in China has prompted governments around the world to step up surveillance and […]
With three confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Canada, 40 potential cases under investigation and the World Health Organization declaring the virus an international public health emergency, unions — especially those representing transport and health-care workers — are calling on employers to ensure sufficient safety measures are in place. The Ontario Nurses Union sent out […]
Just as the outlook for the global economy had been brightening in recent months, a new threat has suddenly emerged in the form of the viral outbreak in China. That was the cautionary message that Chairman Jerome Powell delivered Wednesday after the Federal Reserve held interest rates low after its latest policy meeting. Speaking at […]
An international outbreak of respiratory illness sparked by a novel coronavirus has spread from its origins in central China to at least 11 countries, with more than 1,200 confirmed cases and over 40 deaths. Like previous outbreaks, including the SARS virus 17 years ago, the flu-like disease poses a risk to economies around the world […]
With the global economy recently experiencing some significant tailwinds, will that backdrop be enough to push emerging markets, especially Asian economies, to outperform? Signs of stabilization are peeking through, with central banks acting as the key heroes by providing stimulus, said Eric Lascelles, chief economist at RBC Global Asset Management Inc., in a webinar on […]