A new variant of the new coronavirus named B.1.1.529 was discovered in South Africa, and local officials said it was very worrying. The WHO named the strain omicron. People are worried that the new variant virus may be immune to vaccines and contribute to the epidemic in many countries, putting pressure on the health system, or making efforts to reopen the economy and borders more difficult. As a result, a wave of hedging in global markets broke out on Friday. The U.S. stock market and crude oil market plummeted, and U.S. Treasuries rose. Governments around the world have begun to issue bans on travelers from South Africa and nearby countries.

US President Joe Biden decided on Friday to impose new travel restrictions on southern African countries. This move shows that the United States has joined the ranks of other countries in an attempt to slow the spread of a new variant of the new coronavirus that may be very dangerous. The emergence of this variant virus has caused severe damage to the global financial markets. Senior U.S. government officials said the U.S. will restrict the entry of people from South Africa and seven other countries from Monday. In a statement, Biden called the decision a "precautionary measure before we get more information."

As the new mutant strain triggers a sharp drop in oil prices, OPEC and its allies are increasingly inclined to abandon their plans to increase production at the meeting next week. Participants who declined to be named revealed that the Saudi-led coalition of 23 countries tends to abandon the plan to moderately increase production in January at the December 1st to 2nd meeting. After the United States and other oil-consuming countries announced the release of emergency oil reserves on Monday, the organization is already considering a suspension of production increases.

Huw Pill, chief economist at the Bank of England, said that the new crown variant and the risk of another epidemic and blockade may undermine policy makers' views that the UK's economic recovery is maturing. As the Nu variant is disrupting the global market, Pill said in a speech on Friday that the arrival of any new variant could undermine the Bank of England’s guidance that interest rates must be raised in the coming months.

Economists say that the euro zone is experiencing the highest inflation rate since the advent of the euro at the end of the last century. The official data will be released next Tuesday. The median forecast of 40 economists surveyed by Bloomberg shows that consumer prices in the 19-nation euro zone will rise by 4.5% in November. Each interviewee's forecast is higher than the 4.1% increase in October, which is already the highest inflation since the 2008 financial crisis.

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