Bloomberg UK households face a $24 billion spike in their energy bills in April, and the government is running out of time to do something about the biggest reason why: ballooning wholesale costs. Finding a way to help energy companies lessen that 18 billion-pound jolt, or at least spread it over several years, would be the most effective option, …

  Bloomberg Norway boosted an aid program to offset soaring electricity costs for a second time in less than a month, citing the “socially unjust” effect of high prices on households. The state will cover 80% of power costs when the market price for electricity is above 70 Norwegian ore ($0.08) per kilowatt hour in the January to March period, …

  Bloomberg Travellers at Mexico City’s airport had to withstand lines that stretched far outside the hub’s doors and onto the sidewalk just to drop off their bags as airlines were hit with staffing shortages due to Covid-19. At least 65 Mexico City flights were cancelled over the past 24 hours, according to tracking site FlightAware. Over the past week, …

  Bloomberg American Airlines Group Inc. and its pilots will seek to reach a short-term contract agreement through a “super negotiations” strategy of accelerated talks starting this month. The two sides will meet five days a week for one month starting Jan. 17, the Allied Pilots Association union told its members. The negotiations will focus on scheduling and compensation in …

  Bloomberg A US labor official granted a request by Arizona workers at Starbucks Corp. to hold an election that could expand the new unionized foothold at the retail coffee chain, rejecting the company’s arguments against holding store-by-store votes. The National Labor Relations Board’s regional director ordered that ballots be mailed out January 14 to employees at a store in …

  Bloomberg US labor board prosecutors are trying to violate Whole Foods Market’s copyright and constitutional rights by forcing it to let employees wear “Black Lives Matter” (BLM) masks at work, the Amazon.com Inc. subsidiary claims. In a December 17 filing with the National Labor Relations Board, Whole Foods denied the agency general counsel’s allegations that the company violated federal …

  Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc.’s Indian unit petitioned the country’s Supreme Court against a halt on an arbitration case against Future Retail Ltd.’s asset sale to Reliance Industries Ltd., according to people familiar with the filing. Amazon urged the top court to lift the halt ordered on Jan. 5 by a high court and is likely to seek an early hearing …

  Bloomberg China’s central bank has fuelled expectation it will ease monetary policy early this year with its vow to take proactive action to stabilise growth in 2022. A growing number of economists are predicting the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) will cut banks’ required reserves as well as policy interest rates in the first quarter, as fresh pandemic outbreaks …

  Bloomberg Argentina raised its benchmark interest rate for the first time in over a year as it faces calls from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to tighten its monetary policy. The central bank lifted the key Leliq rate to 40% from 38%, the level it had stood for over a year even with annual inflation running at around 50%. …

  Bloomberg HSBC Holdings Plc’s private bank raised a record of about $3.2 billion for alternative investments from its clients globally in 2021, a jump of nearly 40% from the previous year, as the wealthy look to escape volatility and diversify their portfolios. Clients in Asia, where HSBC is targeting wealth management as a growth engine, added $1.9 billion for …