STUART THEOBALD: Omicron’s timing couldn’t be worse for leisure and travel industries
So what now? On Friday, investors reacted suddenly to news of the Omicron variant, having largely shifted attention to other issues, particularly the inflation and interest rate outlook. Covid-19 was, in many minds, something that developed markets, at least, had under control. That has changed quickly.
SA was the epicentre of a global shock because the spread of the Omicron variant seems to be most entrenched here. While the JSE all share index was down 4.5% in dollars, the MSCI World wasn’t far behind, falling 2.5%. Markets price an uncertain future. It could turn out that the variant is clinically mild and well controlled by vaccines. On the other hand, it could presage a new wave of strict lockdowns...
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