MADRID, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Spanish shares suffered heavy losses in the opening hours of trading on Monday morning amid fears over the effects of the coronavirus epidemic on the global economy.
The Ibex-35 benchmark index opened at 8,375.60 points on Monday morning after losing more than 15 percent of its value over the previous fortnight.
But the first two-hour trading saw prices crash across the board, with the Ibex-35 dropping below the 8,000-point mark to a low of 7,754.40 points with a further 7 percent slashed from share values.
The Ibex-35 rallied slightly in mid-morning, but by 11 a.m. the market had still lost 5.76 percent from its previous closing, with every company trading in Madrid seeing their shares lose value.
Petrochemical giant Repsol was the worst hit, as falling oil prices knocked 13.65 percent off its share prices, while shares in steel producer Arcelormittal had gone down by 12.50 percent.
Cellulose and clean energy producer Ence Energia y Celulosa, the "best" performing company, saw its shares lose 2.78 percent of its value in the first two hours of trading.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez prepares to hold an inter-ministerial meeting over the effects of the coronavirus, local media reported.
