BANGKOK – Shares skidded in Asia on Monday as investors eyed rising tensions between the Trump administration and China over the origins and handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Facing criticism over his handling of the crisis, President Donald Trump has tried to shift the blame to China. Beijing has repeatedly pushed back on U.S.
accusations that the outbreak was China’s fault. Markets in Hong Kong and India fell about 4% on Monday, and other regional markets also were lower.
Trading was halted for holidays in mainland China, Japan and Thailand. Stocks closed broadly lower on Wall Street on Friday after disappointing results from Amazon and other big companies drove home the damage to the economy from the pandemic.