Stocks around the world drop on virus concerns, led by China

Stocks around the world drop on virus concerns, led by China

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NEW YORK (AP) — US stocks are falling at the start of trading Thursday, following other markets lower as authorities rush to contain a deadly virus outbreak in China. The coronavirus has been confirmed in five countries, and the worry is that its spread could hurt tourism and the global economy. Losses were sharpest in Asia, particularly in China. European indexes fell more modestly, and the S&P 500 lost 19 points, or 0.6%, to 3,302. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 210, or 0.7%, to 28,976, and the Nasdaq dropped 48, or 0.5%, to 9,335 The 10-year Treasury yield slumped to 1.72% from 1.77%.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

World shares fell Thursday as health authorities around the world rushed to monitor and contain a deadly virus outbreak in China and keep it from spreading globally.

China and other nations have ramped up screenings for fever on aircraft and at airports. The central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the virus is concentrated, closed down its train station and airport Thursday to prevent people from entering or leaving the city.

Adding to concerns, the outbreak coincides with the annual travel of hundreds of millions of Chinese for the Lunar New Year festival, which begins Friday.

In Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.1% to 6,003 while Germany's DAX slipped 0.5% to 13,454. Britain's FTSE 100 gave up 0.4% to 7,544. Wall Street futures edged lower, with the contract for the S&P 500 down 0.1% and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 0.2%.

In Asia, early gains were erased midsession, with Chinese benchmarks leading losses.

The coronavirus has been confirmed in five countries, including China, the U.S., Thailand, Japan and South Korea. So far, China has confirmed more than 500 people have fallen...

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