In Asian Equity Markets indices fell on Thursday as the U.S. Federal Reserve kept interest rates on hold and investors continued to watch for developments on the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 1.72%. In Taiwan, where markets returned to trade from the holidays, the Taiex declined 5.25% as shares of manufacturing giant and major Apple supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry, also known as Foxconn, fell more than 9.5%. Elsewhere, the Nikkei 225 in Japan fell 1.84%. Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.42%.

In Currency Markets the U.S. dollar held near a two-month high against a basket of major currencies while the Australian dollar and the yuan were under pressure on Thursday as investors tried to shield themselves from assets that could be hit by China’s virus epidemic. The U.S. Federal Reserve, while keeping interest rates on hold as expected on Wednesday, also cited the virus as a source of uncertainty for the economic outlook. The dollar is the best performing currency among G10 currencies in January, with the dollar index rising 1.6%.

In Commodities Markets oil prices fell on Thursday as the death toll from the new virus in China climbed to 170 and more airlines canceled flights to the country’s major cities, while rising U.S. crude inventories added to the negative tone. Brent was down 35 cents, or 0.6%, at $59.46 a barrel, having risen 0.5% on Wednesday. U.S. crude was down 30 cents, or 0.6%, at $53.03 a barrel, after dropping 0.3% in the previous session.

In US Equity Markets stocks rose on Wednesday, boosted by Apple, Boeing and General Electric following their quarterly results, though worries about the economic damage of the fast-spreading coronavirus kept gains in check. The S&P 500 gained 0.45%, to 3,291, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.54%, to 9,319.34. Apple Inc gained 3.05% after the iPhone maker late Tuesday reported earnings for the holiday shopping quarter that topped analysts’ expectations, even as it braced for more disruptions in virus-hit China.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields fell on Wednesday as the death toll from a Chinese virus rose sharply, and dipped to session lows after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and said it would continue expanding its balance sheet. Benchmark 10-year note yields fell five basis points to 1.59%.The closely watched yield curve between three-month bills and 10-year notes very briefly inverted on Tuesday for the first time since October. It traded at 3 basis points on Wednesday.