STI extends rally on Wall St surge

AS ATTENTION pivots away from concerns over the spread of the novel coronavirus, risk-friendly activity in the region's equity markets continued to pick up on Thursday.

Even though fatality and infection cases from the virus are still rising - more than 560 deaths and over 28,000 diagnosed, most Asia-Pacific indices recorded strong early gains.

One reason is that Wall Street is soldiering on to new record highs on strong US corporate earnings and economic data; another is that the Chinese central bank's stimulus injection has calmed fears of a sharp slowdown in its economy, and also that there was a cure for the virus being developed (though it was later played down by the World Health Organization).