Cruise stocks dive into negative territory after CDC recommends avoiding cruise travel

Shares of cruise operators took a dive into negative territory in midday trading Thursday, erasing earlier gains, after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it now recommends avoiding cruise travel, “regardless of vaccination status,” but stopped short of requiring a pause in sailings. The CDC said it has raised its COVID-19 Travel Health Notice to “Level 4: Very High” from “Level 3: High,” reflecting increases in cases onboard cruise ships since identification of the omicron variant. Shares of Carnival Corp. CCL, -1.25% dropped 1.1%, Royal Caribbean Group RCL, -1.11% fell 0.7% and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. NCLH, -2.59% shed 2.0%, while the S&P 500 SPX, -0.30% gained 0.2% toward a record. Prior to the CDC’s recommendation, shares of Carnival were up 3.5%, Royal Caribbean were up 2.2% and Norwegian were up 3.8% at their intraday highs. The CDC said those who still decide to travel on a cruise ship should be fully vaccinated before travel, and should get a vaccine booster if they are eligible.