Outbreaks of the virus outside China have sparked concerns among investors of global economic damage.
Stocks on Wall Street rebounded on Wednesday, recovering from back-to-back losses this week that had wiped more than 6 percent off the S&P 500.
The recovery came even as major markets in Europe and Asia continued to drift lower, as investors reacted to reports of the coronavirus quickly spreading across the globe.
The S&P 500 was up more than 1 percent in early trading Wednesday. The benchmark had fallen 3 percent on Tuesday and experienced its worst one-day slide in two years on Monday.
President Trump on Wednesday placed the blame for the turbulent markets on the media outlets CNN and MSNBC, which he said in a tweet were “doing everything possible” to make the virus outbreak look “as bad as possible, including panicking markets, if possible.” He added that the United States was “in great shape” and that he would hold a news conference on the coronavirus situation on Wednesday evening.
The virus outbreak that began in China has now infected more than 80,000 people and killed more than 2,700 around the world. Authorities in Italy are struggling to contain an outbreak that is threatening to disrupt Europe’s fourth-largest economy. Greece and Brazil reported their first cases. Iran has seen dozens of deaths from the virus, with cases spreading across its borders throughout the Middle East. South Korea is working to manage the largest outbreak outside of China, with more than 1,200 reported cases.
As the virus spreads, economists warn the crisis could roil global supply chains and hamper economic growth. Investors have been dumping stocks all week, seeking safer investments like government bonds, pushing prices up and yields down.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which was up slightly early Wednesday morning, closed at a record low of 1.335 percent on Tuesday, a sign that investors expect growth in the United States to slow.
European markets, which fell more than 1 percent earlier on Wednesday, recovered through the day. In afternoon trading, the DAX in Germany was flat, and the FTSE 100 in Britain was 0.4 percent lower. In Asia, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 0.7 percent and the Shanghai Composite Index dropped by 0.8 percent.
