Stocks lose momentum in afternoon trading; S&P down 0.1 per cent

TOKYO –

Stocks were losing momentum in early afternoon trading as investors continue to close out their positions for 2021. The slight declines come as the market gives up a little bit of the big gains it had from the day before.

Banks and travel companies were among the better performers, while technology companies, which did well on Monday, lagged the broader market.

The S&P 500 was down 0.1 per cent as of 12:55 p.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2 per cent and the Nasdaq was down 0.5 per cent.

Technology and health care stocks were moving lower, with vaccine makers Pfizer and Modern both down roughly 3 per cent.

Graphics chip maker Nvidia, which was one of the better performers on Monday, was down roughly 3 per cent as well.

Travel companies recovered some of their losses from this month. Carnival, Norwegian Cruise Lines as well as airlines Delta, United and American were all up 1 per cent or more.

Investors continue to watch the spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, which is quickly becoming the dominant strain throughout the world.

While virus-related lockdowns and travel restrictions remain a big concern, most big investors have closed out their positions for 2021 and are like to hold their ground until next week.

The market got some encouraging news Monday when the Centers for Disease Control reduced the amount of time an infected person would need to isolate if they tested positive.

Oil prices continued to climb, adding to their gains from the day before. U.S. crude was up 0.6 per cent.