U.S. stocks opened slightly higher Thursday, recovering from the previous session’s decline, though gains are likely to be limited as investors remain worried about the possibility of a recession in the new year.

At 06:55 ET (11:55 GMT), the contract Dow futures It was up 80 points, or 0.2 percent. S&P 500 futures was trading 16 points, or 0.4% more, and Nasdaq 100 futures It was up 80 points, or 0.7%.

The three main averages closed on Wednesday with sharp declines: the index Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 365 points, or 1.1%; The Generalized Index S&P 500 down 1.2%; and the Technology Index Nasdaq Composite It plummeted 1.4%.

These major indexes are on track to post their worst annual result since 2008, with the Nasdaq losing the most, falling by about a third, as fears of a recession as a result of aggressive monetary tightening has prompted investors to abandon growth stocks.

The main economic data to be published on Thursday will be the weekly figure of Applications for unemployment benefit, which is expected to rise to 225,000 in the week ended Dec. 24, up from 216,000 in the previous period.

The {{ecl-1901|| Data released by the European Central Bank on Thursday showed bank lending to euro zone companies slowed in November as rising interest rates and the looming recession appear to be taking their toll.

Separately, Ukraine reported a new wave of Russian missile attacks, with explosions in several cities, including the capital, Kiev.

In the business sector, Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) is in the spotlight on Thursday, after the airline canceled about 60% of today’s flights, adding to the thousands already scrapped this week, drawing the ire of the country’s regulators.

Oil prices fell on Wednesday as rising COVID cases in China, the world’s biggest crude importer, dampened hopes of a surge in demand for this major source.

U.S. crude inventories fell by 1.3 million barrels in the week ended Dec. 23, according to data provided by the industry body, the American Petroleum Institute, lower than expected.

The U.S. Government, through the Energy Information Management, will publish its official weekly figures later in the session.

By 06:55 ET, the futures of the U.S. crude They were trading 1.2% below $77.99 a barrel, while the Brent It fell 0.9 percent to $83.20.

In addition, the futures of the gold fell 0.1% to $1,813.45/oz, while the pair EUR/USD It rose 0.2% to 1.0633.