Futures tipped Wall Street’s S&P 500 to drop another 0.5 percent when trading begins today.

The FTSE 100 was set to drop 0.4 percent following a 3.1 percent drop on Wednesday.

Oil prices went down in Asian trading after an increase in crude oil inventories sent benchmarks about 6 per cent lower on Wednesday.

Brent crude, the international marker, was down 0.3 per cent at $40.21 a barrel while West Texas Intermediate, the US benchmark, fell 0.1 per cent to $37.96.

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7.10am update: Property prices to decline by at least five percent – expert warns

The value of properties around the world is set to decline by at least five percent due to the coronavirus pandemic a leading expert has warned.

Liam Bailey, global head of research at Knight Frank in London said: "Our general view is that prices across most major markets will fall, probably around five percent and in some it could be more significant.”

“The risks are to the downside. The big thing that we don't know is the potential for a second outbreak and lockdown.

“And if we get another significant lockdown, then there is every chance that prices would fall again."

5.56am update: China taps World Bank official for US-facing finance post

China is adding a new face to its trade negotiation team by appointing its chief representative at the World Bank to head the Finance Ministry’s international cooperation department, three people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Yang Yingming, who has been Executive Director for China at the World Bank in Washington since 2016, returns to the finance ministry months after Beijing and Washington completed a Phase 1 agreement that brought a truce to their bitter trade war, although bilateral tensions remain at their worst in decades.

Yang, who is among a group of rising Chinese economic policymakers with international experience, told some of his colleagues recently in Washington that he was returning to China to work on G-20 coordination and Sino-US trade talks, two of them said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Yang, the finance ministry, and the World Bank’s Beijing office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

(Additional reporting by Rachel Russell)