Global
Omicron mutant
On 26 November, the WHO held an emergency meeting to discuss the new crown variant of B.1.1.529. The WHO issued a statement after the meeting, listing it as a Variant of Concern and naming it Omicron. The first sample of the mutant was collected on 9 November. The mutant strain contains a large number of mutations, some of which are of concern. Preliminary studies suggest that this strain poses an increased risk of re-infection in humans compared to other strains of “concern”. Currently, the number of cases of this mutant strain is increasing in almost every province in South Africa.
U.S oil plunged
US oil plunged 14% intraday on the 27th. OPEC+ representatives said that next week Saudi Arabia may propose to temporarily abandon the original arrangement to increase production by 400,000 barrels per day in January next year, idle capacity gradually depleted Russia may not object. The collapse in oil prices is the best reason for OPEC+ to suspend production increases, or even to start cutting production, with US oil falling the most since it fell into negative territory in April last year, dropping below the key $70 mark, and bunker oil falling as deep as 12%.
Japan CPI rose
On Friday, Japan’s CPI in Tokyo rose by 0.5% year-on-year in November, compared to 0.1% previously, the Ministry of the Interior reported. The core price index (excluding fresh food) rose by 0.3%, in line with expectations.
Of this, energy prices rose by 14%, the highest level since 1981. However, a plunge in communications tariffs pulled down overall prices.
Australia
ASX tumble as a result of Omicron
ASX futures were down 104 points or 1.4 per cent to 7166. The S&P/ASX 200 Index shed 1.7 per cent on Friday.
The S&P/ASX200 is lower today as at opening, dropping 34.40 points or 0.47% to 7,244.90 and setting a new 20-day low. The bottom performing stocks in this index are UNIBAIL-RODAMCO-WESTFIELD and VICINITY CENTRES, down 7.19% and 4.78% respectively.
