S&P500
Omicron statistics on February 8.
The US market is moderately lower during a sluggish trading session.
Major US stock indices dropped moderately before closing on Monday: the Dow decreased by 0%, the NASDAQ fell by 0.6%, the S&P500 lost 0.4%.
Asian markets on Tuesday morning: Japan's stock indices rose by 0.2%, China's indices went down 1.2%.
Energy: Oil is hitting its long-term highs for the fourth day in a row, Brent crude oil is trading at $92.80, a new rally is possible.
EU Minister of Foreign Affairs Borrell said that the gas war between Gazprom and the EU in winter 2021-2022 resulted in the EU current key task to focus on ensuring maximum diversification of gas suppliers. This means that the EU will try to reduce Gazprom's share in the total volume of gas purchased by the EU.
The S&P500 is trading at 4483, the range is 4440 - 5420.
Meta (the owner of Facebook and Instagram) said it would not plan to leave Europe after the EU passed a law requiring data to be stored only on EU servers. Previously, Meta had stated it might leave the EU after this law was passed.
According to the company report, Tesla held $2 billion worth of bitcoin in December 2021.
Experts think the US market has slowed its growth recently due to the sharp rise in US government bond yields. With high stock prices and questionable prospects for further strong growth investors prefer to invest in bonds. The market is awaiting Thursday's inflation report. Besides, inflation is expected to remain high.
Omicron global statistics. Omicron shows clear signs of decline. Yesterday, a total of 1.85 million Omicron cases were detected globally. Compared to the peak of 3.7 million on January 21, the figure has twice dropped. Yesterday, the number of Omicron cases fell by 156,000 cases in the US compared to highs of 700,000. Currently, the increase of new Omicron cases was recorded in Eastern Europe. Yesterday, Russia topped the global list of new Omicron cases for the second time. The figure increased by 170,000. However, Russia shows no new highs for the third day either.
Biden met with new German Chancellor Scholz yesterday. He said at the meeting that if Russia invaded Ukraine, Nord Stream 2 would definitely be stopped.
The co-producer of the new "Matrix" movie is suing Warner Bros. over its decision to begin showing in theaters and online simultaneously. According to the plaintiff, this hit box office receipts.
The USDX is trading at 95.50, the range is 95.20 - 95.80. The dollar, as well as the euro has been steady for 3 days. The market will probably expect the inflation data on Thursday.
The USD/CAD pair is trading at 1.2680, the range is 1.2580 - 1.2780 Yesterday, the pair dropped from 1.2780 due to high oil prices.
Conclusion. The market is steady. A new growth is possible, however there may be a new wave of decline, if the inflation data on Thursday comes out above the forecast.