Shares rebound on signs of progress in battling virus

BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares and U.S. futures rebounded on Monday as investors grasped at threads of hope that the battle against the coronavirus pandemic may be making some progress in some hard-hit areas.

Markets in Tokyo and Sydney gained more than 4% on Monday and Hong Kong climbed 2.3%. New York futures were more than 4% higher.

The gains followed another Friday session of losses after the U.S. said employers cut 701,000 more jobs than they added last month, the first drop in nearly a decade. Investors fled the market ahead of the weekend.

Oil prices fell back after a meeting between OPEC and Russia reportedly was delayed until April 9.

Reports have shown the number of people dying appears to be slowing in New York City, Spain and Italy. The news was cautiously welcomed by leaders, who also noted that any gains could easily be reversed if people did not continue to adhere to strict lockdowns.

“Hundreds of people are passing away each day from the pandemic, but less so than previous days, giving markets hope that the lockdown measures are finally starting to prove effective," Jeffrey Halley of Oanda said in a commentary.

“Like the rest of the world, financial markets are searching for any slivers of hope," he said.

The situation has deteriorated in other areas as rates of infections have surged.

The Nikkei 225 index jumped 4.2% to 18,576.30 on reports Japan's prime minister, Shinzo Abe, plans to announce a state of emergency on Tuesday, seeking to further curb public activity and contain the outbreak.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 2.3% to 23,758.32. South Korea's Kospi added 3.6% to 1,787.02, while the S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney advanced 3.6% to 5,302.20. Shares also rose in Taiwan and Southeast Asia.

Shanghai's market was closed for a public holiday.

New York's...