The Australian dollar was steady at 71.12 US cents.
US stocks fell on Monday, pushed lower by surging Omicron coronavirus cases and a possible fatal blow to a $US1.75 trillion domestic spending bill, with oil prices sliding more than 3 per cent. US stock indexes retreated more than 1 per cent on Monday as positive COVID-19 case counts rose, European nations and Britain weighed new restrictions to limit the spread and President Joe Biden's investment bill hit a significant setback.MSCI's index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.7 per cent to its lowest in a year and the world stocks index hit its lowest in nearly two weeks.Investors feared that new restrictions would weigh on fuel demand, sending oil prices lower.
"It was kind of a triple whammy on the economy over the weekend — Omicron, the Fed, and taking the fiscal initiative off the table," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Cresset Capital Management.On oil markets, Brent crude was down 4.8 per cent to $US69.97 a barrel.
So letting Omicron out into Australia was going to be good for the economy? Another LNPfail