The US is still trying to shake off a massive economic downturn triggered by the pandemic. Yoshinori Shigemi, global strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management said: “The second wave is becoming a theme for markets. The increase in states such as Florida and South Carolina is big enough to be labelled as second wave.”

“Whether there will be a lockdown may vary depending on region.

"It will be a tough decision for politicians. But they probably have no other choice if they are running out of hospital beds,” he said.

The pandemic is accelerating globally with the World Health Organization (WHO) reporting a record increase in global coronavirus cases on Sunday.

“The market has been pricing in a rapid recovery so I doubt there are much upside gains to be made. We now need to see whether the earnings outlook will meet up with expectations,” said Takuya Hozumi, investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.