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The safe-haven yen rallied while the South African rand and risk-sensitive Australian dollar slumped on Friday, as investors ducked for cover following the discovery of a new coronavirus variant that could resist current vaccines.

Stocks suffered their sharpest drop in three months in Asia on Friday and oil tumbled after the detection of a new and possibly vaccine-resistant coronavirus variant sent investors scurrying toward the safety of bonds, the yen and the dollar.

House price inflation in New Zealand will ease substantially next year, followed by outright price falls in 2023, but affordability is set to worsen in one of the world's most expensive property markets, a Reuters poll found.

Euro zone money markets on Friday scaled back bets on a rate hike from the European Central Bank next year as news of a new coronavirus variant spreading across South Africa cast a shadow over the short-term economic outlook.

UK's blue-chip index hit more than one-month lows on Friday, with commodity, travel, and banking stocks slumping after a newly detected and possibly vaccine-resistant coronavirus variant sapped risk appetite among global investors.

China stocks fell on Friday as domestic COVID-19 cases and a new and possibly vaccine-resistant coronavirus variant weighed on investor sentiment, with semiconductor-related and energy shares leading the drop.

The safe-haven yen rallied and the South African rand tumbled on Friday as investors turned cautious after Britain raised the alarm over a newly identified coronavirus variant spreading in the African nation.

Australian shares to open largely flat on Friday, with energy stocks likely to dip tracking a slight fall in oil prices in thin trading on the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday.

Malaysian palm oil futures slipped on Friday on course for a weekly decline, weighed down by weaker crude and rival oil prices.

Securities analysts revised their ratings and price targets on several European companies, including Kingfisher, Medios and Remy Cointreau, on Friday.