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US stocks struggled to hold onto early pre-market gains Monday, as the news around the Omicron coronaviruses variant continued, while the price of oil rebounded after a weekend battering.
The reports about the Omicron coronaviruses' effects had calmed some nerves earlier, but the news of rising cases revived them. Concerns about Federal Reserve tightening and Chinese property sector risks weighed on stocks.
The futures on the Jones were up. The S&P 500 futures were flat, while the Nasdaq futures were lower. The time is later. The US stock market fell Friday after a week of whipsaw action.
The Medical Research Council of South Africa found that COVID-19 patients needed less high-level care. Anthony Fauci, a US medical adviser, told CNN on Sunday that it doesn't look like there's a great degree of severity to Omicron.
"Omicron could be both more transmittable, but also less severe," analysts fromDeutsche Bank said in a Monday note. The degree of both depends on how that impacts the world. It could be bad news, but it could also accelerate the end of the epidemic.
The US added just 210,000 jobs in November, the official figures showed, prompting markets to think the Fed will announce a faster pace of bond buying next week.
The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note was up 5.1 basis points on Monday, while the dollar was up.
In Europe, the pan-continental Euro Stoxx 600 gained 2%, while London's FTSE 100 was up 0.6%, and the Frankfurt's DAX added 0.1%. German factory orders fell in October due to global supply-chain constraints.
In Asia, the pressure on China tech names continued after Didi delist its shares in the US. The Hang Seng Tech Index fell in Hong Kong. The Golden Dragon China Index fell more than 9% on Friday.
Chinese authorities stepped in to address Evergrande's troubles after the company said there is no guarantee it would have enough funds to repay its debt obligations. The Chinese property development giant's shares in Hong Kong fell to an 11-year low.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.7%, while the Shanghai Composite closed 0.5% lower. The Tokyo stock market lost 0.4%.
Cryptocurrencies fell on Saturday. The price of ether fell to a two-month low before recovering.
"Cryptocurrencies are often held up by proponents as a useful portfolio inflation hedge, but wild swings like what we saw this weekend back our view that is more akin to a highly speculative risk asset," the analysts said.
On Monday, ether was down 5.7% while the coin was down 3.6%.
Saudi Arabia raised the prices of crude it sells to Asia and the US in January, despite concerns about the impact of rising Omicron cases on demand.
West Texas Intermediate put on 2.6% to reach $67.97 a barrel, while the price of crude futures was up 2.3% at $71.53 a barrel.
A currency strategist at U.S. bank shares 3 trends he believes will shape the market in the next year.
Business Insider has an original article.
