U.S. stocks fell on worries about the Omicron coronavirus variant ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting later this week, while investors watched Apple close in on $3 trillion in market capitalization
"The big unknown is still the Omicron variant and we don't know just yet how that may affect markets and the economy, but as long as that uncertainty exists the volatility is probably going to remain higher," said Randy Frederick, managing director of trading and derivatives at Charles Schwab., a gauge for investor anxiety, spiked 2.2 points by early afternoon trading.shares fell 1.1%, reversing gains from earlier after J.P.
"When you see big companies like do well, it basically means that people are gravitating towards quality. Big companies that are very profitable, that have very strong cash flows are really considered a safe haven in many cases," Frederick said. The Fed's policy decision still remains a top event for markets, with bets running high that the U.S. central bank will hint at a faster tapering of asset buying and an earlier start to raising interest rates.
"Everyone is focused on the Fed this week and what guidance we get in terms of bond purchases and interest rates. There's an expectation that there will be an acceleration of tapering, and there's a little anxiety leading up to that," said Ryan Jacob, chief portfolio manager at Jacob Internet Fund. A Reuters poll of economists sees the central bank hiking key interest rates from near zero to 0.25%-0.50% in the third quarter of next year, followed by another in the fourth quarter.
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