ECB joins trillion dollar club, but stocks still struggle
Only twelve zeroes will do nowadays.
After Donald Trump promised a one trillion dollar stimulus, the European Central Bank is also talking big numbers.
Late Wednesday (March 18) it launched 750 billion euros in emergency bond purchases.
Combined with existing plans, that will take its buys for the year to 1.1 trillion euros - about $1.2 trillion.
The news failed to cheer Asian markets.
Korea's Kospi index plunged by over 8% on Thursday (March 19).
The rest of the region saw declines of at least a percent.
Traders there say some investors seem to be liquidating their share holdings for fear that markets will shut altogether.
But Thursday (March 19) did at least see Europe's stock slide pause, briefly.
The regional Stoxx 600 index was up as much as 1.5% in early trade, before sliding back into the red.
Recession fears trumped any early optimism, with new figures showing German business morale at 11-year lows.
Even so, Baader Bank's Robert Haalver says the ECB move did have an effect:
(SOUNDBITE) (German) HEAD OF CAPITAL MARKET ANALYSIS AT BAADER BANK, ROBERT HALVER, SAYING:
"The ECB will buy more than a trillion euros worth of bonds this year and its message is very clear: issue as much debt in Europe as you want. We will make sure the money is there, above all cheaply. So we will be seeing economic stimulus packages we don't dare dream about yet. There will be lots of money around so that a recession does not turn into a depression."
Oil held onto some gains.
International benchmark Brent Crude jumped as much as 7% early Thursday.
But with sentiment and prices so volatile, traders say cash is king.
As money flows out of almost all other assets, the U.S. dollar was again among the gainers.
