Sharjah24 – AFP: Stock markets and oil prices plunged Friday over fears of a new coronavirus variant that scientists warn could be more infectious than the Delta strain and more resistant to vaccines, potentially dealing a heavy blow to the global economic recovery.
The Dow saw its worst drop of the year as Wall Street indices plunged and the dollar floundered, while haven investments such as the yen and Swiss franc rallied.
US crude oil prices tumbled more than 13 percent and the main international contract lost nearly 12 percent, which CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson attributed to "concerns that this new mutation could add to the pressure on demand."
Fears of the new variant have already led several countries in Europe and Asia, including the US, to ban or sharply limit travel from southern Africa.
Share prices of airlines and tourism groups dived, while there were big losses also for energy groups.
On Wall Street, the carnage included a 2.5 percent loss for the Dow in a session of shortened hours following the Thursday Thanksgiving holiday.
Europe's main equity markets ended the day lower as well, with the FTSE 100 shedding 3.6 percent and Paris and Frankfurt falling more than four percent, after sharp declines in Asia.
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