Wall Street was all over the place on Thursday, with the Dow drifting in and out of positive territory to ultimately finish unchanged. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were not as fortunate, both snapping three-day win streaks amid a bout of profit-taking, with the latter logging its 10th-straight triple-digit move.
Traders are now turning their attention to tomorrow's consumer price index (CPI) for November. Economists are expecting a high inflation reading, which may, in turn, prompt the Federal Reserve to begin tapering off economic stimulus sooner than previously anticipated.
The Dow Jones Average (DJI - 35,754.69) fell less than 1 point, or was flat for the day. Walmart (WMT) led the gainers, adding 1.4%, while Intel (INTC) paced the laggards with a 2.5% fall.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 4,667.45) shed 33.8 points, or 0.7% for the day. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 15,517.37) shaved 269.6, or 1.7% for the day.
Lastly, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX - 21.58) added 1.7 points, or 8.5% for the day.
OIL PRICES TUMBLE ON OMICRON TRANSMISSIBILITY
Oil prices settled lower on Thursday, tumbling from their two-week highs. Investors were once again concerned about the impact the omicron variant may have on crude demand, after a study out of Japan showed the strain is over four times more transmissible than the delta variant. In response, January-dated crude shaved off $1.42, or 2%, to finish at $70.94 per barrel.
Gold prices settled lower as well to log their first loss in three sessions. Contributing to the precious metal's lackluster price action was the U.S. dollar's regained strength. Plus, omicron variant fears are still keeping investors at bay. As a result, February-dated gold shed $8.80, or 0.5%, to close at $1,776.70 per ounce.
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