Latest variant sends JSE tumbling
Stocks on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange has taken a tumble the news broke of the latest Covid variant.
Economist Mike Schussler says the plunge is a knee-jerk reaction that also saw the global market and currencies drop.
"The fear is that people are worried that the world economy is going to be impacted and as it is impacted, they are going for what they call 'safer assets'.
"So they are looking at bounds in America, Switzerland or Japan. So these areas are seen as safe havens and money is glowing into them and they are flowing out of risky assets, like South Africa."
The country's Covid infections have doubled in the last 48 hours.
Schussler says this cannot lead to another lockdown - the country would not survive.
"We have seen the job losses, hungry people everywhere. We cannot have a situation where again we go into lockdown and everybody from the car guards, Uber drivers to local restaurants and hotels cannot earn money.
"It's going to actually destroy more now because the reserves of the economy had are busy being burnt up."
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