World stocks stall as virus concerns linger

World stocks steadied and oil prices eased in quiet trade on Monday as flight cancellations over Christmas revived concerns that the Omicron virus variant could slow down the economy heading into the new year.

World shares were little changed by 0946 GMT as tentative gains in Europe were offset by earlier weakness across Asian markets, although some investors were confident a global recovery would regain steam next year.

"Heading into 2022 we will still Covid uncertainties but the good news is that according to the WHO we may be see the end of the pandemic towards the end of year," said Jawaid Afsar, sales trader at Securequity.

He added that next year markets would also have to contend with other issues, ranging from inflationary pressures to policy tightening and geopolitical risks.

The pan-European equity benchmark was up 0.2 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei ended 0.4 per cent lower and South Korea's Kospi dropped 0.4 per cent.