Asian markets are down across the board Tuesday over lingering worries about the rising casualties from the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and the stalemate in Washington over a potential new financial relief package.   Japan’s benchmark Nikkei index ended down 0.1%.  The S&P/ASX index in Australia dropped 0.4%.  Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index plunged 0.6%.  The KOSPI index in South Korea lost 0.1%, while Taiwan’s TSEC index plummeted one percent.   Singapore’s Composite lost 1.8 points, but was unchanged percentage-wise (0.06%).  In late afternoon trading, Mumbai’s Sensex is 25 points higher, but is also unchanged percentage-wise (0.09%). In commodities trading, gold is trading at $1,848.30 an ounce, up 0.8%.  U.S. crude oil is selling at $46.82, down 0.3%, and Brent crude oil is down 0.5%. All three major U.S. indices are up in futures trading.    
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