World stocks mixed in quiet end of year trading

By ELAINE KURTENBACH
AP Business Writer

BANGKOK (AP) — Major world share benchmarks are mixed at the outset of the last trading week of the year as countries grapple with the spread of the omicron coronavirus variant. Some markets were closed Monday for holidays. Benchmarks were little changed in Frankfurt and Paris. They fell in Shanghai, Bangkok, Tokyo and Seoul. U.S. futures also were mixed. Last week, the S&P 500 set a record as fears ebbed about the potential impact of omicron outbreaks. However, much is still uncertain about the variant, which is spreading extremely quickly, leading to a return to pandemic restrictions in some places. Hundreds of flights were cancelled in the U.S. over the holiday weekend, with airlines reporting COVID-related staffing problems.