President Cyril Ramaphosa may have left the lockdown restrictions on level 1 but the world has locked us out, “punishing” rather than applauding us for being vigilant and swiftly detecting and reporting on the newly named omicron Covid variant. The omicron variant has now been detected in several regions of the world, and putting in place travel bans that target Africa attacks global solidarity, says the World Health Organisation.
The President implored fellow South Africans to get vaccinated – only about a third of our adult population is vaxxed – and called on countries to lift the travel bans before any further damage is done to our economies. Bloomberg reports the travel bans have had a ripple effect, wreaking havoc on air travel across the world, with wider-ranging measures making travel more expensive and less convenient. While the UK, Singapore, Australia and Brazil among others banned flights from some African countries, the Philippines has closed its borders to travellers from Europe and Japan has banned all new foreign visitors effective from tomorrow.
The UN’s tourism body said this morning the coronavirus pandemic will cost the “fragile” and hardest hit global tourism sector $2.0 trillion in lost revenue in 2021, after the industry suffered the same fate last year due to Covid-19. Meanwhile, stranded South Africans are fearful of losing their jobs due to the travel bans.
The silver lining to omicron is that symptoms have been mild so far. The government’s Covid-19 adviser Barry Schoub told Sky News on Sunday that while South Africa currently has 3,220 people infected, there’s been no real uptick in hospitalisations.
The The Scientists Collective says we can get through the Covid-19 maze ahead of the festive season – if the government follows its list of practical advice.
It’s time we all accept Covid is not going away any time soon – if ever – and learn to live with the virus.
Meanwhile in the markets, the initial reaction of the rand to the omicron shock has receded with the currency trading at R16.11 against the US dollar from a high of R16.36/$ on Friday.
“While the initial knee-jerk of the variant seems to be over, we still see some vulnerability in the EM market, with the stronger dollar posing a risk as the US storms into the market today. It will also be a boon to the local market in that the President did not announce any new lockdown measures in his address last night,” comments TreasuryONE.
Commodities also recovered, with platinum and palladium gaining 1.4% and 2.45%, respectively in early Asian trade. Platinum was last trading at $966 and palladium at $1,742. Brent Crude, which lost over 10% on Friday, has gained 3% and is currently trading at $75.27 a barrel.
Here’s roundup of the world’s top and most interesting headlines:
SA Business
R20bn life extension of Koeberg power station poses significant risks for South Africa – Daily Maverick
24 jobs in South Africa that pay over R2 million a year – Business Insider
In slap at China, US praises SAfrica’s detection of new Covid strain – AFP
Global Business
Nissan unveils $18 billion electric-vehicle strategy – Bloomberg
The many alleged identities of Bitcoin’s mysterious creator, Satoshi Nakamoto – Business Insider
Jeff Bezos, Cheapskate – Inc.
Markets
Asian markets extended losses but oil bounces after Omicron rout – AFP
Oil recoups losses from Friday, focusing on Omicron spread, Iran talks – Investing.com
Markets face weeks of uncertainty in wait for omicron answers – Bloomberg
Opinion/In-depth
Beware: Two Zuma men are now in charge of eThekwini – Daily Maverick
Inequality, climate change and economic recovery: how can Africa overcome this triple threat? – Fintech Futures
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