'The worst is yet to come': Global stocks plummet as fears mount of a coronavirus pandemic

Global stocks tumbled on Wednesday as fears of the novel coronavirus escalating into a worldwide pandemic rattled markets.The virus — which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan and causes a flu-like disease called COVID-19 — has infected more than 80,000 people, killed at least 2,700, and spread to around 40 countries.South Korea has reported more than 1,200 cases, and a growing number of European nations are dealing with infections. While the US is yet to suffer a major outbreak, federal health officials warned on Tuesday that it's inevitable."It's not so much of a question of if this will happen anymore but rather more of a question of exactly when this will happen," Dr Nancy Messonier, the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said in a news briefing.The White House has struck a different tone. The Dow  and S&P 500 posted their worst two-day declines since February 2019 on Monday and Tuesday, and the Dow also slumped to its lowest level since October.Several commentators sounded the coronavirus alarm following the selloff."Markets have finally woken up to the threats being presented by COVID-19," Michael Every, a senior Asia-Pacific strategist at RaboResearch, said in a morning note."Investors are deluding themselves about how severe the coronavirus outbreak will be," economist Nouriel Roubini wrote in a Financial Times column. "Despite this week's big selloff in equity markets, the worst is yet to come."The one-two punch of a US-China trade war and a public health crisis could hammer economic growth in China and elsewhere, said Jasper Lawler, head of research at London Capital Group, in a morning note.