South African President Cyril Ramaphosa ascended to the office with the support of labour unions. On Wednesday, his government set the stage for a showdown with them after his finance minister unveiled a plan to dramatically slash public sector wages to rein in the country's rising debt.

Asian shares fell on Wednesday as a United States warning to Americans to prepare for the possibility of a coronavirus pandemic drove another Wall Street tumble and pushed yields on safe-haven Treasuries to record lows.

Hong Kong's banks face at least two quarters of worsening asset quality and slowing loan growth as the coronavirus outbreak hits trade and consumer banking, analysts and bankers have said.