KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia—Shares of rubber glove makers in Southeast Asia have soared as the outbreak of the deadly Coronavirus spreads.
Malaysia's Top Glove saw share prices reach an all-time high of $1.46 on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange on Jan. 28, before closing at $1.42 to end the week on Jan. 31.
Also on the Malaysia exchange, Kossan Rubber Industries saw a 17 percent spike in its stock price, while Hartalega Holdings recorded an 8 percent increase over the final two weeks of last month.
Over the same time frame, Bangkok-listed Sri Trang Agro saw the value of its shares increase to 42 cents from 33 cents.
Recently identified virus 2019-nCoV first was reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of December. The World Health Organization has described spread of the disease as "a global emergency."
By the end of January, the latest WHO estimates put the number of confirmed cases of the disease at 7,800 globally, with at least 170 people dead.