The coronavirus crisis could wipe out $211 billion from economies across Asia Pacific, according to a Friday report from S&P Global Ratings.
Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, South Korea and Thailand “will enter or flirt with recession,” the ratings giant said. S&P Global also trimmed its growth forecast for China from 5.7% for 2020, to 4.8%.
The coronavirus outbreak, which first started in China, is now spreading globally. There are now at least 95,270 confirmed cases and 3,280 deaths worldwide, according to the latest numbers from the World Health Organization. Outside China, the countries most affected by the outbreak are South Korea, Italy and Iran, which have the highest numbers of cases.
“The wider global spread of COVID-19 will prolong the economic fallout in Asia-Pacific,” S&P Global said, referring to the new coronavirus by its official name. “The loss will be distributed across households, firms, banks, and governments.”
“Some economic activities will be lost…
