anti-abortion protesters to be outside as well. jim? all right, nadia, thank you for that report. on wall street recession fear. here is alison kosik with your before the bell report. reporter: hi, jim. this week wraps up the first half of the trading year and it was a rough one. the s&p 500 is on track for the worst first half since 1970. the biggest investor concerns red-hot inflation and a recession. we get a fresh check on inflation this week with may s pce index. the fed s favorite inflation measure in april cooled but prices remain uncomfortably high. the fear is the fe s response, aggressive rate hikes, will spark a recession, something jay powell conceded last week. we re not trying to provoke, i don t think we will need to pro provoke a recession, but it s important to restore price
behaving in a way that is totally at variance for the things with which we stood. reporter: the country s moral compass with a voice to match. desmond tutu was 90 years old. and here s christine romans with your before the bell. hi, ryan. with so many questions these days about how omicron will affect the economy, investors are now hoping for a santa claus rally. historically the last five trading days of december and the first two of january are positive. since 1945 the s&p 500 has gained an average of 1.2% during that period, and it s been up in 58 of the last 76 years. but even if santa claus sits this week out, it s been a surprisingly strong year on wall street. the s&p 500 is up more than 20%, the dow and the nasdaq not far
behind. the big question is what happens next year. the omicron variant has introduced new uncertainty. already economists are racheting down forecasts. before omicron was on the scene, i thought q1 first quarter gdp growth, that s the value of all the things we ve produced were strong, it would grow something like 5%, which is a very strong growth rate. but now i think it s going to be closer to 2. and obviously we still need to see what else is going on with omicron. it could be lower than that. and with the federal reserve possibly raising interest rates three times next year, 2022 could be challenging for the stock market. in new york i m christine romans. before the bell is brought to you by e-trade. trade commission-free today with no account minimums. and go to cnn.com/beforethebell to stay on top of markets and sign up for the daily newsletter. it the most. plus, zero-dollar commissions for online u.s. listed stocks.
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ago. here s alison kosik with your before the bell report. hi, jim. you re patch paying more for pretty much everything. consumer prices hit a fresh 39-year high in december. used cars and trucks and gasoline saw some of the biggest year-over-year increases. this week, the focus shifts to companies as earnings season kicks into high gear. corporate america is also facing higher prices for raw materials and workers. but often companies are passing those costs onto you. that s one reason wall street expects solid corporate profits. analysts predict earnings grew nearly 22% for the s&p 500 in the fourth quarter. that would mark the fourth straight quarter of earnings growth above 20%. keep in mind, it s a short week on wall street. financial markets are closed tomorrow for martin luther king day in. new york, i m alison kosik.