After a US$1 trillion wipeout, emerging markets bank on stimulus

An employee wearing a facemask amid fears of the spread of the Covid-19 (coronavirus) outbreak cleans a bar window in Bangkok on Monday (March 2). The number of deaths globally in the coronavirus outbreak passed 3,000 and the world is now reeling from one of the biggest risk sell-offs since the 2008 global financial crisis. - AFP

SINGAPORE/HONG KONG: With the world reeling from one of the biggest risk sell-offs since the 2008 global financial crisis, more Covid-19 (coronavirus)-fueled declines in emerging markets may only be tempered by the prospect of coordinated central bank action or large fiscal stimulus.

More than $1.1 trillion was wiped off the value of developing-nation stocks and bonds last week as the economic impact of the coronavirus worsened. Currencies and equities rounded off February with back-to-back monthly declines, while bond spreads widened by the most since August.