Stock market news live updates: Stock futures sink amid virus concerns, Manchin's blow to Build Back Better

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Stocks headed for a sharply little unfastened Monday greeting astatine the commencement of a holiday-shortened week of trading, with investors considering renewed virus-related restrictions overseas and prospects that a important societal argumentation measure whitethorn beryllium scuttled.

Contracts connected the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each dropped much than 1%. The Dow headed for a driblet of much than 300 points, oregon 0.9%, up of the opening bell. Treasury yields fell arsenic investors piled into harmless haven assets, and the benchmark 10-year output held beneath 1.4%. The CBOE Volatility Index, or VIX, spiked much than 20% to hover supra 25.

U.S. crude lipid prices sank 3% to commercialized beneath $69 per tube arsenic restrictions mounted successful Europe, stoking jitters astir vigor demand. Countries from Germany to Ireland imposed curfews oregon question restrictions successful caller days fixed the rapidly spreading caller variant. And the Netherlands implicit the play announced a nation-wide lockdown of non-essential stores, bars and restaurants until Jan. 14. As of this weekend, the Omicron variant had been reported successful astir 89 countries, with cases doubling each 1.5 to 3 days.

Renewed fears implicit the economical interaction of the Omicron variant compounded with past week's concerns for investors astir the prospects of tighter monetary policy, with the Federal Reserve accelerating its complaint of asset-purchase tapering and signaling 3 involvement complaint hikes could beryllium coming adjacent year. Last week, each of the 3 large indexes posted steep play losses. The Nasdaq Composite fell 3% and the S&P 500 and Dow each dropped by astir 2% for the week.

Still, different updates astir the effect of existent COVID-19 vaccines connected the variant were much upbeat. Moderna (MRNA) said Monday that a booster, or a 3rd dose, of its changeable accrued Omicron neutralizing antibody levels. This echoed results from Pfizer (PFE) and BioNTech (BNTX) from earlier this period about the effectiveness of their vaccine's 3rd dose connected neutralizing Omicron. Shares of Moderna gained much than 7% up of the opening bell.

Investors besides digested the unexpected quality that Senator Joe Manchin (D., W. Va.) would not enactment President Joe Biden's $1.75 cardinal Build Back Better societal argumentation bill. Manchin, speaking on Fox News Sunday, said helium had discussed with Democratic House and Senate leaders and President Biden, but was incapable to travel to an statement connected the measure fixed concerns astir inflation, the nationalist indebtedness and ongoing pandemic.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki released a connection calling Manchin's comments "a abrupt and inexplicable reversal successful his position," and said the medication would enactment to determination guardant with the authorities adjacent year.

Still, Goldman Sachs this play slashed its 4th GDP forecasts for 2022 following Sen. Manchin's withdrawal of enactment for the bill. The economists, led by Jan Hatzius, said they expected the "fiscal impulse volition beryllium somewhat much negative" than antecedently expected adjacent year, successful lack of the spending connected societal and climate-related policies included successful the bill. The steadfast lowered its U.S. GDP forecast to 2% from 3% for the archetypal 4th of 2022, to 3% from 3.5% for the 2nd quarter, and to 2.75% from 3% for the 3rd quarter.

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