Templeton's Mobius sees bird-flu psychology

The manager of Franklin Templeton’s one-year-oldGlobal Emerging Market open ended investment company (Oeic) fund says that historically speaking, the often mentioned post-war influenza pandemics that started in Asia have killed fewer people over time. In 1957-8 an Asian flu led to about 70,000 deaths, while in 1968-9 it was linked to about 45,000 deaths, while the outbreak of SARS between 2002-3 caused about 900 deaths, he says. The problem is these declining total numbers of deaths - as opposed to death rates of those infected - do not offset the level of worry people may have about ...