Shares dropped in Europe and Asia on Friday after the latest data drove home the extent of economic carnage from the coronavirus pandemic.
Many world markets were closed for May Day holidays. Britain’s FTSE 100 sagged 2% to 5,781.91 while U.S. futures fell sharply, with the contract for the S&P 500 down 2.2% at 2,838.90. The future for the Dow industrials sank 2% to 23,746.00.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 plunged 5% to 5,245.90 with heavy losses in miners and banks. A measure of Australian manufacturing showed activity contracting at its worst pace since 2009. That, coupled with news overnight that millions more Americans applied for unemployment benefits in April, darkened the mood after a relatively strong April.
