Markets in chaos as oil prices plunge, coronavirus spreads

TOKYO: Financial markets have been thrown into turmoil following Saudi Arabia’s response to the collapse of OPEC+ talks and concerns about the global spread of the coronavirus.

Following are comments from analysts:

“What I’m seeing is a confluence of two black swan events: Coronavirus reaction and oil.

“Investors haven’t gone to guns and butter yet. They haven’t made the shift to Procter & Gamble and Pepsi Cola from tech stocks. Those are the sort of things I look for, but until I see that I’m struck that there’s more downside vulnerability.

“The other side of it is debt. As oil prices fall and credit markets tighten, a lot of companies are not going to be able to refinance their debts or extend maturities.”