Omicron variant puts a "winter chill" on U.S. economic recovery

A new coronavirus variant is casting a pall over the holiday season, as a steep uptick of cases is driving restaurant closures, large-event cancellations and causing Americans to pull back on travel plans. 

The hyper-infectious strain of coronavirus known as the Omicron variant has already been detected in 38 states, and comes on top of a wave of Delta variant that pushed up case counts and strained health systems in many parts of the country.

The newest wave closed college campuses and prompted the cancellation of high-profile events including Broadway shows and the UCLA men's basketball game scheduled for Saturday. Meanwhile, fears of illness are pushing travelers to hold off on post-holiday plans and derailing many well-laid return-to-office plans by companies large and small. And stock markets ended the week down, with the Dow dropping more than 500 points Friday and some of its slump attributed to Wall Street worries about Omicron.