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Omicron risks become clearer, Biden’s challenges, and Ukraine pressure mounts. Test results Preliminary data from a trio of studies shows th [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Omicron risks become clearer, Biden’s challenges, and Ukraine pressure mounts. Test results Preliminary data from a trio of studies shows that omicron is [less likely to lead to hospitalization](, suggesting the variant is comparatively less dangerous than delta. The [very rapid spread]( of the new variant means there are warnings that hospitals may still be overwhelmed, and that it remains a risk for those [who are unvaccinated](. Governments continue to take measures to slow the spread, with Chinese authorities locking down a [city of 13 million people]( and mask mandates [being strengthened]( in [many]( [places](. [In Europe]( and the U.S. there is [resistance to more severe curbs]( ahead of the Christmas break. Biden challenge Speaking of government curbs, the U.S. Supreme Court announced it will hear arguments on President Joe Biden’s Covid-19 [shot-or-test rule]( for large employers at a [special Jan. 7 session](. While justices have [backed vaccine rules]( in other contexts, this challenge is on whether the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has the authority to issue the rule at all. The president, meanwhile has said that “fate” and continued good health would decide if [he will run again in 2024](. He said he is more likely to do so if Donald Trump is his opponent. Ukraine Russia is continuing to [build up forces]( close to Ukraine even as the Kremlin denies it plans to invade. While the U.S. said it is ready to hold talks next month, it has called some of the [proposals put forward by Russia]( “unacceptable.” President Vladimir Putin is holding a press conference this morning in which he praised what he described as a [“positive” U.S. response]( to the Kremlin’s demands for legally binding security guarantees to defuse the stand-off over Ukraine. He also lauded Russia’s central bank, saying rate hikes helped [avert a Turkey-style crisis](. Markets quiet Global equity markets continue their moves higher amid increasing optimism over the omicron variant, even as trading volumes remain low. Overnight the MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.9% while Japan’s Topix index closed 0.9% higher. In Europe the Stoxx 600 Index had added 0.6% by 5:50 a.m. Eastern Time, with [travel and leisure companies]( again leading the gains. S&P 500 futures pointed to [plenty of green]( at the open, the 10-year Treasury yield was at 1.476%, oil held close to a [four-week high]( and gold rose. Coming up... The PCE deflator for November is expected to show a rise to 5.7% when the data is released at 8:30 a.m. Weekly initial jobless claims, personal income and spending for November and latest durable goods orders numbers are all also at 8:30 a.m. University of Michigan consumer sentiment and November new home sales data are at 10 a.m. The Baker-Hughes rig count is at 1 p.m. U.S. fixed income markets close at 2 p.m. What we've been reading Here's what caught our eye over the last 24 hours. - Odd Lots: Jon Turek on the [macro outlook for 2022](. - [Emerging market currencies]( are tied to the yen like never before. - [Dorsey-Andreessen twitter spat]( escalates over Web3 ownership. - How [Shopify outfoxed Amazon]( to become the everywhere store. - Billionaires are [selling stocks](. - A flotilla of U.S. LNG cargoes is headed to [fuel-starved Europe](. - Astronomers discover the largest [group of rogue planets]( yet. And finally, here’s what Denitsa’s interested in this morning It's been a big year for dip-buyers. Since January, reversals have followed drops of more than 1% on the S&P 500 about 68% of the time, one of the strategy's [best years]( on record. Just this month in the Nasdaq 100, the absolute size of close-to-close moves has been roughly 1.5%, up or down, three times as great as any December since the Christmas rout of 2018. The question I have is whether this will all end spectacularly with a big storm of volatility that sets up the conditions for the arrival of a Santa rally, and if such a thing is reliable enough to be real. Santa paid Wall Street a visit 57 times between 1950 and 2020, according to The Stock Trader’s Almanac, [delivering]( an average gain of 1.3% to the S&P 500 around Christmas. People generally consider the Santa market period to be the last five trading days of the year and first two of the following. Some technical signals suggest this [may happen]( this year too. According to Fundstrat Global Advisors, a Santa rally could emerge from the coming end of a short-term market phase and the completion of a technical cycle called the Elliot wave structure. But there may be additional pullback into the days ahead so getting on board Tuesday's bounce may be "a bit premature," according to Fundstrat. Of course, past market trends are no prediction of future prices and it's anyone's guess if Christmas 2021 will be a jolly one on Wall Street. Follow Bloomberg's Denitsa Tsekova at [@denitsa_tsekova]( Like Bloomberg's Five Things? [Subscribe for unlimited access]( to trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and gain expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close. Five Things will return on Jan. 3. 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