Biden says that variant is '' cause for concern, not a cause for panic.
HONG KONG SYDNEY, Nov 30 Reuters - Hong Kong expanded its ban on entry for non-residents from several countries as health authorities raced to curb a potential outbreak of the Omicron virus, while Australia's cabinet will review on Tuesday containment steps after five tested positive.
Singapore's health ministry said two travellers from Johannesburg who tested positive for the variant in Sydney had transited through Changi https: www.reuters. Healthcare-pharmaceuticals singapore-says two-travellers sydney-with omicron-transited changi -- 2021 -- 11 -- 30 airport.
Omicrons were first reported in southern Africa and the World Health Organization WHO said it carries a very high risk of infection surges. Border closures have cast a shadow over a nascent economic recovery after a two-year epidemic.
Hong Kong is one of many countries that have expanded travel restrictions. The statement said that the most stringent quarantine requirements will also be implemented on relevant inbound travellers from these places.
Non-residents who have been in Austria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Israel and Italy in the past 21 days will not be allowed to enter the city from December 2, it added.
Non-residents arriving from South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, and Zimbabwe were banned from the global financial hub, one of the last places in the world pursuing a zero-COVID strategy.
In Australia, the five travellers with Omicrons are all in quarantine and vaccinated, health officials said, because they are asymptomatic or display very mild symptoms.
Canberra was delayed on Monday by the reopening of the nation's borders for international students and skilled migrants, less than 36 hours before they were due to be allowed back in.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said at a media conference in Canberra that while Omicron is an emerging variant, it is a manageable variant.
After a rout on Friday that saw roughly $2 trillion wiped off the value of global stocks, growing hopes that Omicron will be milder than feared have helped restore some calm to markets.
Traders took comfort from President Joe Biden's comments that the United States would not reinstate lockdowns.
Biden said in remarks at the White House that this variant is a cause for concern, not a cause for panic.