Stocks plunge over coronavirus fears

The coronavirus outbreak ended one of the longest winning streaks in the financial markets’ history on Wednesday, as major stock indexes plunged and global policymakers grappled with the growing economic crisis.

The widely followed S&P 500 was off nearly 5 percent for the day, and the Dow Jones industrial average fell nearly 6 percent, putting it more than 20 percent below its peak in February — the threshold for a bear market.

The full economic toll of the outbreak will not be clear for months. But there is mounting evidence that it will be severe.

Airlines are warning of empty planes and huge financial losses. A sharp drop in oil prices is threatening to put energy companies out of business and thousands of American drillers out of work. Supply-chain bottlenecks are forcing factories around the world to cut output, even as a slump in consumer confidence is raising doubts that there will be demand for their goods once production resumes.

Policymakers on both sides of the Atlantic appeared unwilling or unable to mount an aggressive response to the crisis. A rate cut by the Federal Reserve last week failed to calm financial markets. A similar move by the Bank of England on Wednesday was equally ineffectual.

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