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Omicron Covid variant causes market jitters

A volatile week could be in store for global stock markets, as concern spreads over the new Covid variant, Omicron.

As scientists scramble to understand the new Covid variant, Omicron and G7 health ministers gather for an emergency meeting, global stock markets are set for a volatile start to the week. We speak to Thomas Cueni, the Director General of International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations and the economist Michael Hughes. Plus, OPEC and other producers, including Russia, will meet later this week. After a plunge in global oil prices last Friday, will they still agree to increase production? Richard Bronze, senior analyst at Energy Aspects, gives us the latest analysis. And the transition to green energy economies means a large rampart in various metals and minerals, like Copper, Cobalt and Lithium. Can this massive future demand be met in an environmental sustainable way that doesn't damage human rights and benefits the communities where the mining happens? Tamasin Ford speaks to several figures in the mining world, from Emmanuel Umpula of the Congo-based NGO African Resources Watch to the boss of one of the world's largest mining companies, Mark Cutifani, the chief executive of Anglo American.

(Image: A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Credit: Getty Images)

Available now

23 minutes

Broadcast

  • Mon 29 Nov 2021 01:06GMT