european stocks could open lower as investors brace for more volatility stock markets in asia are mixed us stock future are pointing to a higher open for major indices dollar is steady oil edges higher while gold prices softened european stocks are set to open lower thursday after a turbulent day on wall street as traders tried to forecast the impact of the coronaviruss omicron variant all three major us indexes finished lower in a stark turnaround from earlier in the day markets were sliding when the white house announced the discovery of the first omicron case in the united states it is unclear whether omicron is more dangerous but governments have responded by tightening travel controls fueling unease about the outlook for a global economic recovery volatility in the short run should be expected ultimately were dealing with a little more uncertainty than we have been said chris zaccarelli chief investment officer of independent advisor alliance theres enough cause for concern that people are shooting first and asking questions later the latest data painted an optimistic picture for economic conditions but that seems to be taking a backseat as the omicron variant can potentially shift the landscape said yeap jun rong of ig in a report on wednesday the institute for supply management reported us manufacturing growth activity accelerated faster than expected in november payroll processor adp said employers hired more people than expected that might raise expectations for fridays us government jobs data stocks to watch investors are too conservative over thyssenkrupps valuation credit suisse said at its fourthquarter earnings adjusted ebit at eur232 million was 17 above consensus but the bigger surprise came from the industrial companys fy 2022 ebit guidance of eur15 billioneur18 billion amid confidence in the recovery of the steel segment and reducing losses in its multitracks division as it divests itself of lossmaking businesses the bank said cs increases its own ebit forecasts for 2022 and 2023 by 51 and 37 respectively to reflect stronger steel prices from annual negotiations with the auto sector more than doubling its eps expectations for those years the bank reiterates its outperform rating and raises its target price to eur1660 from eur1570 the dollar strengthened against the euro and weakens against the yen the chairman of navellier  associates notes that since late june the wsj dollar index has appreciated almost 6 against major currencies the primary reason the us dollar is rallying is due to higher government bond yields than japan and europe plus a strong economic outlook louis navellier said eventually a stronger us dollar helps to lower the prices on most imported goods as well as commodities since they are priced in us dollars so the feds argument that inflation is transitory has some merit since a strong us dollar will help to push down the prices of imported goods and some commodities the strong dollar is also keeping treasurys low he said the euro could fall to 110 next year from 11337 currently given the prospect of the fed raising interest rates sooner rabobank said while the dollars gains could be limited by speculators potentially trimming bets on the currency rising in the coming month it should still rise versus the euro next year given the scope for more hawkish action by the fed rabobank forex strategist jane foley said rabobank maintains its mediumterm eurusd 112 target for now due to the risk of further dollar pullbacks she said that said the possibility of a break lower to 110 during the course of next year has increased usdjpy may fall below the recent support of a 1125011260 band as the spread of the omicron variant leads to drops in stocks and falls in us treasury yields ig said once that support is breached the pair may test the next key level of 11200 it said usdjpy has been trending lower amid concerns about the omicron variant over the past few sessions and is at 11291 compared with 11278 as of wednesday 5 pm eastern time investors are closely watching us weekly jobless claims figures due later in the day to gauge the strength of the current us labor market barclays now believes the fed will raise rates three times in 2022 and slow the pace of asset buying faster than is currently planned but the firm also notes that even as the fed raises rates money markets remain flooded with cash which could blunt the impact of the policy shift with reserves balances over 4 trillion and nearly 15 trillion in the reverse repo facility we expect it will be difficult for shortterm interest rates to trade much above the interest rate floor said the bank oil prices were higher in early asian trade as market concerns about the omicron variant seem to have eased anz said in focus is a meeting between opec members that will determine whether the group will halt planned production increases the bank said the current plan being discussed is whether opec should increase production to 400000 barrels a day in january gold prices were slightly lower in early asian trade the precious metal could trade sideways during the session oanda said while the dollar has eased in recent days and the uncertainty surrounding the omicron variant should give prices a boost rising treasury yields could put pressure on gold copper prices were slightly lower in asias early trade as the commodity extends a broad downturn in recent sessions due to rising concerns over omicron huatai futures pointed out that orders for some copper products weakened substantially in november signalling falling end demand that will weigh on prices supply imbalances continued to hold back us growth this fall feds beige book says the us economy grew at a modest to moderate pace this fall with supplychain issues and labor shortages holding back growth despite strong demand the federal reserve said wednesday the fed report a periodic collection of business anecdotes from around the country known as the beige book found that consumer spending throughout the country was strong but held back by low inventories strong demand allowed firms to raise prices with little pushback from consumers and increases were widespread throughout the economy first us omicron case is california patient the first known case of the omicron variant in the us was identified in a san francisco resident who recently returned from south africa the centers for disease control and prevention and california health officials said the cdc said wednesday that the fully vaccinated traveler who returned to california on nov 22 has mild covid19 symptoms that are improving the person has been selfquarantining since testing positive on nov 29 and all known contacts have so far tested negative for the variant health officials said biden says shelves will be stocked for holidays despite supplychain backlogs washingtonpresident biden said that prices for everything from groceries to gas remain high but sought to assure americans that his administration is tackling supply logjams those shelves are going to be stocked mr biden said in a speech wednesday he cautioned that some holiday gifts are always hard to come by invoking hits from the past including cabbage patch kids washingtonlawmakers worked wednesday to reach an agreement on a shortterm spending patch to avoid a potential partial government shutdown this weekend with democrats and republicans still haggling over the details of the funding extension party leaders had initially hoped to release an agreement earlier this week democrats have eyed a spending patch that would last until midorlatejanuary while republicans have pushed for a longer extension treasury secretary janet yellen on wednesday defended democrats efforts to pass a roughly 2 trillion socialspending package amid republicans criticisms that fiscal policy implemented earlier this year overstimulated the economy and fueled higher inflation we had a very sizable fiscal stimulus ms yellen told the house financial services committee we addressed what was a very substantial risk of a prolonged economic downturn she said shortages of parts and labor are crimping production at trucktrailer factories undercutting trucking companies efforts to expand their capacity in a tight freight transport market russia expels some us diplomats in latest titfortat action russia ordered us embassy staff who have been in moscow for more than three years to leave the country by jan 31 a move that comes a day before diplomats hold talks to address the worsening relationship between the two countries foreign ministry officials on wednesday indicated that the decision to remove the us embassy staff was in retaliation for washingtons expulsion of more than 50 russian diplomats by june 30 in line with previously imposed term limits covid19 cases nearly double in south africa as omicron reaches more countries newly reported cases of covid19 almost doubled wednesday in south africa the country with the highest number of identified cases of the new omicron coronavirus variant as the us reported its first case of the strain in someone who had returned from a trip to the country