Stock indexes in Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong ended lower, though losses were smaller than Friday’s fall, sparked by reports that the new COVID-19 variant, first spotted in South Africa, appeared to be spreading around the globe.
Monday’s rebound comes after stocks on Friday marked their biggest daily loss since February as investors were spooked by the new variant, which some scientists are concerned could prove to be more contagious or deadly than earlier varieties.
Last week, investors sold banks, energy and airline stocks and shifted money into bonds and other safe haven assets.
“ven as we all nervously await further information on this latest variant, investors should recognize that pandemic waves should have a diminishing impact on the economy,” David Kelly, chief global strategist at JPMorgan Funds, said in a note to investors.
Pfizer said last week that it could produce a new vaccine to target the Omicron variant in about 100 days, or just over three months.
The new variant was found as far afield as Hong Kong, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, Portugal and Israel.