U.S. stock options fell overnight on Thursday due to investors getting ready for a shorter trading day. renewed Covid fears over a new variant found in South Africa.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 400 points, while those for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 were both in negative territory.

After WHO officials warned on Thursday of an imminent danger, futures fell. new Covid-19 variant that’s been detected in South Africa. The United Kingdom temporarily suspended flightsDue to this variant, it is available in six African countries.

Markets were closed on Thursday for Thanksgiving, so stocks are coming off of slight gains on Wednesday that staunched the week’s losses for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite.

Treasury yields are up this week which is putting more pressure on high growth stocks. The Nasdaq is down 1.3% for the week, while the S&P 500 is up less than 0.1% and the Dow has gained roughly 0.6%.

Market strength is usually seen in the final weeks of an year, when Wall Street enjoys a festive season thanks to the Santa Claus rally. The S&P 500 is up 25% year to date.

“I believe we are likely in a market in its lane over the next few week until we move on to the next [Fed’s Federal Open Market Committee]Meeting,” stated Yung Yu Ma, chief investment strategist of BMO Wealth Management. I believe the consumer spending will be robust. If we get the November Jobs Report in the middle December, it’ll be very positive.

I believe the FOMC’s announcements will bring the most potential for a recalibration or reconsideration of the market or an upcoming reassessment. [Dec. 15]. Ma stated that until then we will have much more information than we currently know.”

Friday is also the official start to the holiday shopping season. Investors will look for insights from Black Friday in order to predict the consumer’s mood.

This earnings season has seen drastic moves by retail stocks in both the up and down directions. Stocks in Gap, Nordstrom and Kohl fell by more than 20% Wednesday. Kohl’s however, remained steady. jumped more than 10%A week earlier, after reporting high sales growth

The quarter saw retail executives speak about managing inflation and supply chain issues. We are still unsure if the discussion about supply chain issues has influenced holiday shoppers to shop earlier, possibly reducing fourth-quarter sales.

Logan Capital Management portfolio manager Sarah Henry said, “I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a dynamic around Christmas.” She said that the firm was more focused on long-term strategic advantage than simply focusing on holiday sales.

On Wednesday, there were strong economic reports. Personal incomes and consumer spending in October came in higher than predicted. initial jobless claims hitting their lowest level since 1969. However Core PCE (the Fed’s preferred indicator of inflation) is still the best. remained elevated at 4.1%.

No major economic announcements are scheduled Friday. At 1 p.m., the stock market will be closed. ET will close at 1 p.m. on Friday, due to the holiday weekend.

— CNBC’s Eustance Huang contributed to this report.