MARKET WRAP: JSE drops as US-China tensions resurface

The JSE closed lower on Monday as renewed tension between the US and China, after questions about the origin of Covid-19, weighed on global market sentiment.

Global equities were in negative territory after US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that China had made a “mistake” that caused the rapid spread of the coronavirus, CNBC reported. US secretary of state Mike Pompeo said there was significant evidence that Covid-19 originated from a laboratory in China. The number of confirmed cases worldwide had surpassed 3.5-million by Monday.