Beijing, Asian stock markets followed Wall Street lower on Monday amid concern about the coronavirus’s latest variant and tighter Federal Reserve policy.
Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney retreated at the start of a trading week that will be shortened by the Christmas holiday, The Associated Press (AP) reported.
Wall Street fell Friday as traders took money off the table after the Fed indicated it would fight inflation by speeding up withdrawal of economic stimulus.
The spread of the omicron variant has fueled fears that renewed curbs on business and travel might worsen supply chain disruptions and boost inflation.
“Omicron threatens to be the Grinch to rob Christmas,” Mizuho Bank’s Vishnu Varathan said in a report. “The jury is out, which squares with a market that prefers safety to nasty surprises.”
The Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.5% to 3,613.50 and the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo tumbled 1.7% to 28,055.28. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong sank 0.9% to 22,976.86.
The Kospi in Seoul retreated 1.4% to 2,975.70 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 lost 0.2% to 7,288.30.
New Zealand gained while Singapore and Jakarta retreated.
The U.S. government warned Sunday of a possible surge of “breakthrough infections” due to Americans traveling for the Christmas and New Year holidays.
Source: Bahrain News Agency