<p>Asian stock markets were generally weaker with US crude in holiday-thinned trading on Monday, as uncertainty over the economic impact of the Omicron coronavirus variant weighed on investor sentiment.</p>.<p>US airlines have cancelled or delayed thousands of flights over the past three days due to Covid-19-related staff shortages, while several cruise ships had to cancel stops after outbreaks on board.</p>.<p>In Asia, China reported its highest daily rise in local Covid-19 cases in 21 months over the weekend as infections more than doubled in the northwestern city of Xian, the country's latest Covid hot spot.</p>.<p>Japan's Nikkei lost 0.20 per cent while South Korea's Kospi fell 0.11 per cent.</p>.<p>Mainland Chinese shares, though, were mixed, with Shanghai's benchmark sliding 0.37 per cent but an index of blue chips edged 0.05 per cent higher.</p>.<p>Australia, Hong Kong and Britain are among markets closed Monday for holidays.</p>.<p>"There is concern over the widening spread of the Omicron variant, which is overall making people cautious about taking stocks higher" in Japan, said a market participant at a Japanese securities firm.</p>.<p>Wall Street trading resumes later in the global day following a holiday on Friday. US stocks closed at records on Thursday amid signs Omicron may cause a milder level of illness, even as the highly transmissible strain led to a surge in case numbers around the world.</p>.<p>Emini futures point to a 0.1 per cent rise for the S&P 500 when it reopens.</p>.<p>In the foreign exchange markets, the US dollar continued to languish near the bottom of its range of the past month against a basket of major peers, after hitting a 16-month high in November as Federal Reserve policymakers turned more hawkish.</p>.<p>The dollar index was about flat at 96.116, towards the bottom of the range from 95.544 to the 16-month peak at 96.938 reached on Nov. 24.</p>.<p>In the crude market, US West Texas Intermediate futures fell 59 cents to $73.20 a barrel. The contract did not trade on Friday because of the US market holiday.</p>.<p>Brent crude though rose 26 cents to $76.40 a barrel, rebounding from Friday's 71 cent decline.</p>.<p><strong>Check out the latest videos from <i data-stringify-type="italic">DH</i>:</strong></p>
<p>Asian stock markets were generally weaker with US crude in holiday-thinned trading on Monday, as uncertainty over the economic impact of the Omicron coronavirus variant weighed on investor sentiment.</p>.<p>US airlines have cancelled or delayed thousands of flights over the past three days due to Covid-19-related staff shortages, while several cruise ships had to cancel stops after outbreaks on board.</p>.<p>In Asia, China reported its highest daily rise in local Covid-19 cases in 21 months over the weekend as infections more than doubled in the northwestern city of Xian, the country's latest Covid hot spot.</p>.<p>Japan's Nikkei lost 0.20 per cent while South Korea's Kospi fell 0.11 per cent.</p>.<p>Mainland Chinese shares, though, were mixed, with Shanghai's benchmark sliding 0.37 per cent but an index of blue chips edged 0.05 per cent higher.</p>.<p>Australia, Hong Kong and Britain are among markets closed Monday for holidays.</p>.<p>"There is concern over the widening spread of the Omicron variant, which is overall making people cautious about taking stocks higher" in Japan, said a market participant at a Japanese securities firm.</p>.<p>Wall Street trading resumes later in the global day following a holiday on Friday. US stocks closed at records on Thursday amid signs Omicron may cause a milder level of illness, even as the highly transmissible strain led to a surge in case numbers around the world.</p>.<p>Emini futures point to a 0.1 per cent rise for the S&P 500 when it reopens.</p>.<p>In the foreign exchange markets, the US dollar continued to languish near the bottom of its range of the past month against a basket of major peers, after hitting a 16-month high in November as Federal Reserve policymakers turned more hawkish.</p>.<p>The dollar index was about flat at 96.116, towards the bottom of the range from 95.544 to the 16-month peak at 96.938 reached on Nov. 24.</p>.<p>In the crude market, US West Texas Intermediate futures fell 59 cents to $73.20 a barrel. The contract did not trade on Friday because of the US market holiday.</p>.<p>Brent crude though rose 26 cents to $76.40 a barrel, rebounding from Friday's 71 cent decline.</p>.<p><strong>Check out the latest videos from <i data-stringify-type="italic">DH</i>:</strong></p>