Asian markets tumble as infection rates jump

Asian markets sank Friday as rising virus infection rates across the world put the brakes on the latest rally. Equities have shown a healthy resilience to the rapid spread of the disease around the world, with hopes for the economic recovery, the easing of lockdowns, and government largesse providing crucial support. But several days of figures showing a record number of new cases in populous US states including Florida, Texas, and California -- leading to the reimposition of containment measures -- were beginning to sink in. A lockdown in Australia's second-biggest city Melbourne and the sprouting of new clusters in Hong Kong, which had gone weeks without any...