SLOVENIA

Lockdown of businesses tightening again from 24 Dec to 4 Jan

The government adopted a decree at Monday's correspondence session that again tightens restrictions for the sale of goods and services as of Thursday. The decree that restores the regime that was recently relaxed will be in force until 4 January. (STA)

INTERNATIONAL MARKETS

S&P 500 closes lower in volatile session after new Covid strain causes U.K. to lock down; European stocks fall sharply amid jitters over new coronavirus strain; Stoxx 600 down 2.3%; BELEX15 down only light 0.1%
The S&P 500 fell slightly in volatile trading on Monday to start the holiday week as enthusiasm over a coronavirus stimulus deal was overwhelmed by worries over a viral new Covid strain in the U.K. The broad equity index dipped 0.4%, or 14.49 points, to 3,694.92 after falling nearly 2% at its session low. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.1%, or 13.12 points, to 12,742.52. The Dow Jones Industrial Average erased a 400-point loss to eke out a small gain as strength in Nike and bank shares supported the blue-chip benchmark. The 30-stock Dow rose 0.1%, or 37.40 points, to 30,216.45.
Nike popped nearly 5% to hit a record high on the back of strong earnings. Bank stocks jumped in unison with JPMorgan and Goldman up 3.8% and 6.1%, respectively, after the Federal Reserve announced it will allow the industry to resume share buybacks in the first quarter of 2021.
Tesla dropped more than 6% as it entered the S&P 500 with a 1.69% weighting in the index, the fifth largest. The stock fell to its session following a report that Apple is moving forward with its plan to produce electric vehicles.
European markets closed significantly lower on Monday as investors monitored a fast-spreading new variant of the coronavirus that has shut down much of the U.K. The pan-European Stoxx 600 provisionally closed 2.3% down, with banks falling 3.6% to lead losses. All sectors and major bourses slid into negative territory.
BELEX15 was down only light 0.1% as NIS saw minor 0.5% loss, while 2.1% drop at Energoprojekt also contributed. The most active was Philip Morris, with RSD 1.6min volume (preferred shares). (CNBC, ILIRIKA)