Dow Futures Sheds 794 Points as COVID-19 Preventive Measures Stir New Restrictions

Just as the world appears to be healing from the pangs of the coronavirus pandemic, a newly discovered COVID-19 variant from South Africa is stirring new restrictions, and this development has plunged the Dow Futures by 794 points. The Futures for the S&P 500 as well as the Nasdaq Composite were also impacted as the broader US stock market fights for balance.

The United States stock market closed on Thursday for the Thanksgiving Holiday, and assets are billed to stop trading at 1 pm ET today. As reported earlier by Coinspeaker, the S&P 500 (INDEXSP: .INX) advanced 0.23% to around 4,701.46 in the last trading session, just below a November 18 closing record high at 4,704.54.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ: .IXIC) inked a 0.44% growth, advancing with a 70 points addition to 15,845.23. The tides were not in favor of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX: .DJI) as the 30-stock index slumped by a mere 0.026% to 35,804.38.

The World Health Organization (WHO) issued warnings on Thursday about a new COVID-19 variant that was discovered in South Africa. Countries including the United Kingdom are already taking the necessary precautions to avert a national disaster. The UK has temporarily suspended flights from South Africa and 5 other African countries including Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe, and Botswana.

The reverberations of these measures are resounding as the yield on the benchmark US 10-year Treasury note fell to 1.5380%, a sharp reversal after surging above 1.65% earlier this week. Oil prices also plunged low with the US Crude Futures slipping 5.4% to $74.15 per barrel.

Dow Futures Ahead of Holiday Sales and amid COVID-19 Cases Growth

The world is heading into the December shopping era as investors look to gauge consumer optimism across the board.

The companies that stand to benefit the most from the potential upsurge in sales including Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) closed Wednesday’s session up 0.33% to $161.94. Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) inked a slight gain, American department store retail chain, Kohl’s Corporation (NYSE: KSS) has been on a tear in anticipation of the Holiday season as its shares rose more than 10% a week ago per a CNBC report.

“I would not be surprised if that was a dynamic around the holiday season,” said Sarah Henry, a portfolio manager at Logan Capital Management. She added that her firm was looking for companies with long-term strategic advantages rather than trying to bet on the best holiday sales results.

Streaming service providers including Netflix Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) and Amazon Prime Videos amongst others are also on track to benefit from the forthcoming holiday season as consumers will seek to catch up at home in place of cinemas. This potential subscription drive is billed to be recommended as health officials are likely to start warning against large gatherings with the new COVID-19 variants posing threats across the board.

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