Wounded Asia stock traders seek new bottom

Hong Kong: There is no lack of superlatives for the drubbing Asia stocks took to end February in the face of soaring coronavirus cases outside of China: Friday was the worst day for regional equities since October 2018, ending the poorest week in two years and the worst February since the global financial crisis. The speed and magnitude of the rout naturally raises one question – when will the market find its footing?

Investors zeroed in on various metrics to answer that question. A fund manager at Samsung Asset Management is tracking the rate of new infections globally, while a strategist at Jefferies Financial Group Inc said investors should look for stabilisation in the junk-bond market. And of course, economic numbers and valuation are also closely monitored.With low visibility on the virus spread globally, “the level of overshooting from the fundamental equilibrium likely depends on the rate of increase of infections in the United States and Europe, ” said Alan Richardson, a fund manager at Samsung Asset Management.