Dollar Rises, Major Currencies Fall After Turmoil Due to Omicron

The dollar rose while the euro fell, and the yen stabilized on Monday as markets calmed after the first shock of discovering a new coronavirus mutant.

The mutant Omicron, which was first detected in South Africa, caused global concern, as financial markets fell on Friday, amid fears that its appearance would disrupt the global economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic that began two years ago.

The World Health Organization said it was not yet clear whether Omicron, which has been discovered in many countries, is more capable of spreading than the previous mutant or if it causes more severe disease.

Markets calmed somewhat on Monday, while US stock futures and oil prices rose, with investors taking a more balanced approach and accepting to wait until the impact of the new mutation becomes clear.

The US dollar index rose 0.1 percent to 96.326 and had seen its most significant one-day decline since May last Friday.

The dollar’s status as a haven of value qualifies it to benefit from the uncertainties. Still, it fell on Friday due to expectations that the Omicron mutant’s emergence will affect the major central banks, including the US Federal Reserve.

The euro fell by 0.4 percent to 1.12665 ​​dollars, and it rose against the dollar on Friday.

The Japanese yen was stable and rose 0.2 percent against the dollar to hit 113.33 yen to the dollar.

Analysts warned that the currency markets would likely witness more turmoil until more information about the new variable is known.

Investment bank Goldman Sachs said it would not adjust its economic forecast based on the emergence of Omicron until its impact became clear.

Regarding cryptocurrencies, bitcoin hit a seven-week low on Sunday before rising about 0.1 percent to $57,386.24, but it remained well below its all-time high of $69,000 hit earlier this month.