Asian markets struggle amid rising Covid-19 concerns in China

Hong Kong – growing concern about China’s latest Covid-19 outbreak Investors fear authorities may return to highly restrictive containment measures.

Optimism is mounting as the country announces its first virus death in six months, thanks to easing inflation concerns and signs China is moving toward a more gradual approach to the disease after it began rising in November. Since then, it has been a big shock.

These happened as the epidemic spread across China, and residents of Beijing said their leaders introduce lockdown measures Similar to what was seen in Shanghai earlier this year, it lasted for several months.

The resurgence comes just a week after China announced it would start. Rolling back some of the strict Covid-19 rules It has been in place since the pandemic began in 2020, even as the rest of the world moved on.

The latest developments highlight China’s long road to emerge from the crisis as President Xi Jinping sticks to his zero-coronavirus strategy, widely blamed for economic troubles, analysts say. .

“Risk sentiment is under pressure with questions over China’s reopening,” said Steven Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.

“Some investors believe China’s reopening will be a formality and will be catalyzed by[the World Health Organization]downgrading Covid-19 to endemic. We know China’s economic reopening will jerks and starts as the routine of stepping back becomes the norm.”

Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.7% in the noon break. Hong Kong, where he rose more than 10% in a three-day surge earlier this month, fell 0.8% for a fifth consecutive day, while the Shanghai Composite Index was flat.

Still, it rose in Tokyo, Sydney, Manila and Jakarta. Singapore’s Straits Times Index was up 0.6% at 11:10 am local time.

This came after a fall on Wall Street where trading was lighter than usual due to the Thanksgiving holiday at the end of the week.

On Wednesday, the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting will be released. It delves into officials’ thinking behind 40 years of high inflation and signs of economic slowdown.