(Bloomberg) --

South Africa’s benchmark stock index plummeted the most on record after President Cyril Ramaphosa’s declaration of a national state of disaster over the coronavirus outbreak stoked investor concern about its impact on an already fragile economy.

The president announced tough measures Sunday to stem the spread of the virus locally, including halting flights and shutting schools, and said the government was finalizing a crisis package.

Read more about South Africa’s national State of Disaster

An emergency cut in the U.S. Federal Reserve rate, as well as those by other central banks to try to stem the impact of the virus, only accelerated the sell-off sweeping through global equities. The FTSE/JSE Africa All-Share Index sank 12%.

“The JSE is taking cues from global markets which will also be reacting to the U.S. Fed cut that only increased fear,” Nolwandle Mthombeni, an analyst at Mergence Investment Managers, said by email. “There additionally will be some local investors worried about our economy after the president’s speech last night.”

Naspers Ltd., South Africa’s biggest stock, fell 13% to weigh most on the overall market, while heavyweight Richemont declined 12%. Just two of the benchmark’s 158 members was higher as of 3:19 p.m.

The index’s 30-day price volatility rose to 51% on Monday, the highest since the global financial crisis of 2008.

Retailers had their worst day on record as concerns over the impact of the virus on spending combined with a dismal reading of consumer confidence. Gold miners also posted their biggest-ever declines.

“I expect there will be more negative days than positive over the next few weeks as further data comes out that confirms growth slowdown,” Mthombeni said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Adelaide Changole in Johannesburg at achangole2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Blaise Robinson at brobinson58@bloomberg.net, John Viljoen, Paul Jarvis

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