© Reuters.

By Kim Khan

Invesesting.com - Brazilian stocks fell deeper into the red following a trading halt Thursday on a report that President Jair Bolsonaro was being tested for the novel coronavirus.

The benchmark had already been slammed, like other global markets, on worries of the Covid-19 pandemic, and fell to fresh lows once the halt, triggered by circuit breakers, ended.

The Bovespa was down 12% in morning trading.

Bolsonaro is being monitored and tested for the coronavirus, Brazilian newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo reported Thursday, according to Reuters. The newspaper report did not cite sources.

The far-right leader had downplayed fears about the spread of the disease Tuesday, saying it was not all the media made it out to be.

The iShares MSCI Brazil Capped ETF (NYSE: ) sank 17.5% on the New York Stock Exchange.