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.
