US stocks opened higher on Tuesday, riding the wave of a holiday week boosted by reduced rules on coronavirus infections that should offer help for employee-challenged businesses.
The travel sector was the big winner, with airlines regaining lost ground in the prior season after thousands of flights were canceled over the Christmas holiday weekend, largely due to labor shortages due to the new Omicron version of COVID-19.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday slashed the isolation period for asymptomatic Covid-19 cases in half to five days “followed by five days of wearing masks when around others.”
Investors and economists were already feeling confident that the latest strain of the virus would have a limited impact on the economy, and CDC guidelines linked upbeat sentiment and a “Santa Claus rally” during the holiday week.
“This recommendation will ease some of the pressure from staffing shortages, which in turn is feeding market sentiment that the economic impact of the O’Micro version is going to be short-lived,” said Briefing.com analyst Patrick J. O’Hare.
“However, in all likelihood, the real catalyst for a positive disposition in the futures market is pure momentum.”
About 30 minutes into the trading session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6 percent to 36,501.88.
The S&P 500, which closed two straight records, was on its way to a third, rising 0.3 percent to 4,805.57, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose a little more than 0.1 percent to 15,893.71.
Major airlines like United and Delta jumped two percent or more amid reliefs that will make their staffing issues more manageable.
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