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Gold was set on Friday for its worst week in five months, as bullion prices were hammered by increasing bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve would accelerate the pace of stimulus tapering and raise interest rates sooner to curb rising inflation.

Gold gained on Friday, as concerns over the spread of a newly identified coronavirus variant boosted the metal's safe-haven appeal, although bullion was set for a weekly drop on bets of U.S. Federal Reserve turning more hawkish.

The South African rand sank below 16.00 to the dollar for the first time this year on Friday as, with investors unnerved by the discovery of a significant coronavirus variant in the country, government bonds and shares also tumbled.

Central European currencies and stocks fell on Friday, hurt by a global risk-off mood triggered by a newly identified coronavirus variant found in South Africa, which prompted Asian and European countries to rush to tighten restrictions.

Emerging market assets were firmly in the red on Friday, with South Africa's rand dropping 2%, as a possibly more dangerous COVID-19 variant was detected, forcing new travel restrictions.

Japan's Nikkei slumped on Friday to its lowest level in a month as a new coronavirus variant found in South Africa raised an alarm, while the news that Beijing has asked Chinese hailing giant Didi to delist from New York also soured the mood.

Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of markets brought to you by Reuters reporters. You can share your thoughts with us at markets.research@thomsonreuters.com

News of a new coronavirus variant potentially resistant to current vaccines sent investors dashing for the safety of the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc on Friday, while the possible unwinding of U.S. rate hike bets weighed on the dollar.

Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of markets brought to you by Reuters reporters. You can share your thoughts with us at markets.research@thomsonreuters.com

A barrage of misleading prime-time adverts and little attempt to educate first-time investors scattered across small towns are some of the problems surrounding cryptocurrencies in India. A government plan to present a bill on regulation prompted panic-selling of digital assets earlier this week. The volatility underscores the need for a rapid decision on whether India wants to embrace them or not.