The Russian rouble recovered on Monday after sinking to a more than seven-month low on Friday, buffeted by swinging oil prices, geopolitical risk and the emergence of the Omicron strain of COVID-19, which has hurt risk appetite globally.

At 0710 GMT, the rouble was 0.9% stronger against the dollar at 74.97  , recovering from its weakest mark since April 22 of 75.9225 hit on Friday.

The rouble has slipped from a multi-month peak of 69.21 versus the greenback hit in late October as it has come under selling pressure on Western concerns about possible Russian military intervention in Ukraine.

It had gained 1.2% to trade at 84.47 versus the euro  , recovering from a more than two-month low.

Currency markets calmed on Monday in Asia after the initial shock of Omicron's discovery sent investors scurrying for cover last week, but analysts warned of more volatility with little still known about the new coronavirus strain.

"The risk trade has again come under siege by the COVID-19 clan ... fears are that the strain will trigger new broader lockdowns that derail the global economic recovery," said BCS Global Markets in a note.

Brent crude oil LCOc1 , a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was up 3.8% at $74.49 a barrel, after hitting its lowest since September on Friday.

Russian stock indexes were also higher.

The dollar-denominated RTS index .IRTS was up 2.5% to 1,629.5 points. The rouble-based Russian index was 1.8% higher at 3,878.8 points.

 

(Reporting by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Edmund Blair)