Here we go again.
It’s not that we really have any more information about the Omicron Variant–we certainly don’t know what its effects will be on global economic acuity–but just as fears that the Covid-19 variant would send the world back into lockdown crushed stocks last week, this morning, December 7, a belief that Omicron won’t be all that bad has taken root and stocks are soaring in morning action. (I’m being so specific about when this market action is taking place because this market is so volatile that it could turn on a dime on a shift in sentiment even without any additional news.)
As of 11:30 a.m. in New York the Standard & Poor’s 500 was up 2.08% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was ahead 1.50%. The very economically sensitive small cap Russell 2000 was higher by 2.87%. With techs in rally-rally mode (sort of like when the turbocharger kicks in on your car’s engine) the NASDAQ Composite had gained 2.87% and the Big Tech heavy NASDAQ 100 was up 2.90%.
The preference this morning is for all things technology. Apple (AAPL) is up 3.29% and Microsoft (MSFT) has gained 2.87%, for example.
But the big gains are coming in the technology momentum favorites from before Jerome Powell and the Omicron Variant stalled the end of the year move.
Nvidia (NVDA) is up 5.764% this morning. NXP Semiconductors (NXPI) is up 6.01%. Semiconductor equipment makers ASML Holding (ASML), Applied Materials (AMAT), and Lam Research (LRCX) are up 6.20%, 6.47%, and 5.99%, respectively.
Cyber security stocks Palo Alto Networks (PANW) and CrowdStrike (CRWD) have gained 5.04% and 4.95%, respectively.
All things chips are on fire with the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) up 4.84% and Qrvo (QRVO) higher by 6.42%, for example.
The market hasn’t forgotten “re-opening” stocks with Macy’s (M) ahead 3.55%, Six Flags (SIX) gaining 4.30%, and American Airlines (AAL) higher by 2.01%.
But this is definitely technology’s day.
Until the next shift in sentiment or the next piece of news (war scare from Ukraine, perhaps).
The CBOE S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX) plunged again today dropping another 18.87% on top of yesterday’s 11.38% fall. At 22.05 this morning the VIX is down massively since it hit 31.12 on December 1.
