Investor Bill Ackman said the new omicron variant of the Covid-19 virus could actually give U.S. stocks a boost if symptoms turn out to be less severe.

Ackman stated in a Sunday tweet that while it was too soon to know definitively, the Omicron virus can cause mild to moderate symptoms and may be more transmissible. This is bullish news for the markets if it turns out that this is true.

Pershing Square Capital Manager’s CEO and founder added, “It would be bullish in the equity market and bearish in the bond markets.”

The new Covid strain was first discovered in South Africa. It has been detected in over a dozen other countries. This is causing many people to be concerned. restrict travel Southern Africa. According to the World Health Organization, this omicron strain is a “variant of concern” on Friday when the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 900 points to suffer its worst day since October 2020.

The omicron variant has been linked with covid symptoms. “extremely mild”South African physician who raised alarm about the strain.

The WHO stated that it would take several weeks for scientists to determine how this variant could affect vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics.

Ackman’s statements have been watched by many throughout the turmoil of the markets over the last two-years and during the current health crisis. Ackman appeared on CNBC in March 2020 to warn investors about the Covid-19 crisis. “hell is coming” and urged President Donald Trump and corporate America to shut down the country for 30 days to contain the outbreak, calling it the only option to rescue the economy.

Days after the interview, Ackman revealed his firm exited the short positions just as the S&P 500 bottomed, pocketing more than $2 billion in bets against markets that month.

Ackman spoke out in July, as Wall Street struggled with the Delta Covid variant. it doesn’t pose a significant threatTo the economic recovery, he expects that interest rates will rise on the back of this great comeback.

The hedge fund manager also called on the Federal Reserve at the end October to reduce the amount of support the Federal Reserve has given the economy in the pandemic. He suggested that the central bank “taper instantly and start raising rates as quickly as possible.”

Pershing Square has approximately $13 billion of assets. According to company statements, the hedge fund’s performance through October was up 27.2% and 21.6% respectively net of fees. The fund had a record 2020, during which it returned an astounding 70.2% net.

Ackman is betting heavily on the recovery in restaurant, retail, and hotel industry. At the end of third quarter, his top holdings included Lowe’s, Hilton, Restaurant Brands and Chipotle. He picked up Domino’s Pizza shares earlier this year following a pullback.