Asia Stocks Mix in Morning Session over Concerns of Rising New Coronavirus Cases!

Stocks in Asia were fluctuating in the morning session on Monday, June 22, 2020, as investors weighed on the development of the coronavirus outbreak after the U.S. started to see an uptick of new cases, reporting over 30,000 new cases for two days straight.

 

As of 9:20 local time in Thailand (GMT+7), Nikkei dropped 0.09%, SSEC rose 0.10%, HSI fell 0.57%, ASX 200 shedded 0.08% and Kospi slipped 0.33%.

Last Friday, Dow Jones closed at 25,871.46 points, fell 208.64 points or 0.80%. S&P 500 dropped 0.56%, but Nasdaq gained 0.03%.

 

The situation of a possible second wave in the U.S. started to weigh on investors’ sentiment after the nation reported 30,000 new cases on both Friday and Saturday, making the highest figure since May 1.

 

Krungsri Securities (KSS) had a negative view on SET Index, expecting to trade lower at 1,350-1,355 points before rebounding, mainly due to the negative sentiment for the banking sector after the announcement of the Bank of Thailand to halt Thai commercial banks in paying an interim dividend for the 2H operations, and banned a share repurchase program to maintain its funds financial level. The move reflected the possibility of rising NPL. Moreover, the rising global coronavirus cases, especially in Brazil, USA and India, also weighed on investors sentiment as well.