Futures for Canada's main stock index fell in thin trading on Friday weighed by weaker crude prices as COVID-19 cases soared to new daily highs across the globe, stoked by the omicron variant.
The S&P/TSX Composite dropped 50.01 points Thursday to 21,294.64
The Canadian dollar added 0.18 cents to 78.64 cents U.S.
March futures lost 0.2% Friday.
WestJet Airlines will cancel 15% of scheduled flights in January because the rapidly spreading omicron has left the airline unable to fully staff its operations.
RBC raised the target price on OpSens to $4.00 from $3.50
Ontario and Quebec announced fresh measures to combat COVID-19 on Thursday as the country faces a rise in cases that has forced tens of thousands into isolation, made tests difficult to access and burdened its health-care sector.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 9.66 points, or 1.1%, Thursday to 933.94
ON WALLSTREET
Stock futures dipped Friday morning as traders get set to close out a stellar 2021.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials dropped 61 points, or 0.2%, to 36,232.
Futures for the S&P 500 fell 6.5 points, or 0.1%, to 4,765.50.
Futures for the NASDAQ swooned 19.25 points, or 0.1%, to 16,411.
Friday’s moves came as traders continued to weigh the threat of the omicron COVID-19 variant. On Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said "avoid cruise travel, regardless of vaccination status." However, White House medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci predicted earlier in the week that the omicron wave could peak by the end of January.
Stocks have been on fire in 2021.
Entering Friday’s session, the S&P 500 was up 27.2% year to date. That puts the market benchmark on track for its third straight annual gain. Energy and real estate have been the best-performing sectors in the S&P 500 this year, surging more than 40% each. Tech and financials are also up more than 30%.
The 30-stock Dow was up 18.9% through Thursday’s close, also putting it on pace for its third consecutive yearly gain. Home Depot and Microsoft have led the Dow gains, rising more than 50% each.
The tech-focused NASDAQ has risen 22.1% this year, putting the composite on track for its ninth annual gain in 10 years. Names like Alphabet, Apple, Meta Platforms and Tesla have led NASDAQ’s gains this year.
Overseas, markets in Japan were closed, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 1.2% in an abbreviated session.
Oil prices gave back $1.27 to $75.72 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices hiked $6.80 to $1,820.90 U.S. an ounce.
