Bloomberg Much of the UK economy is starting the new year on sick leave. With Covid infections soaring to about 200,000 a day as the Omicron variant spreads, hospitals, restaurants, transport operators and retailers are facing acute levels of staff absenteeism. England’s National Health Service is coming under particular pressure. Matthew Taylor, chief executive officer of the NHS Confederation, ...

  Bloomberg Walmart Inc and Kroger Co are boosting the price of a popular at-home Covid-19 test after a deal with the White House to sell the kits at cost expired. The price of BinaxNOW tests at Walmart is rising to $19.88 this week from $14, the company said in an email Tuesday. Kroger said it reinstated “retail pricing” after ...

  Bloomberg North Korea appears to have launched its first ballistic missile in about two months, after leader Kim Jong-un indicated he was more interested in bolstering his arsenal than returning to stalled nuclear talks with the US. North Korea fired what appeared to be a ballistic missile from land into waters off its east coast Wednesday, South Korea’s military ...

  Bloomberg Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev accepted the government’s resignation on Wednesday after increases in fuel prices led to clashes between protesters and police in central Asia’s largest energy producer. The unrest intensified even after Tokayev declared a state of emergency in and around the country’s largest city, Almaty, and the oil-rich Mangystau region. The declaration allows him to impose ...

  Bloomberg Australia and Japan will sign a “historic” treaty that will further strengthen defense and security cooperation during a virtual leaders’ summit on Thursday, in a move that could further inflame tensions with China. The agreement is the first of its type for Japan, other than with the US and the UN, and marks a step closer in a ...

  Bloomberg Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Beijing Winter Olympics venues a month before the games begin amid a worsening Covid-19 outbreak and diplomatic tensions with Western nations over human rights. He toured the National Speed Skating Oval, athletes’ village, and operations and media centers, according to state-run China Daily. Xi told event organizers that the Olympics would be considered ...

  Bloomberg The US Treasury sanctioned Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik and his associated media outlet for engaging in destabilizing and corrupt activities that threaten to tear Bosnia-Herzegovina apart. “Dodik has undermined BiH institutions by calling for the seizure of state competencies and setting in motion the creation of parallel institutions in BiH’s Republika Srpska entity,” the Treasury said in ...

  Bloomberg President Joe Biden promised to “fight for fairer prices” for farmers and consumers as he announced plans to combat the market power of the giant conglomerates that dominate meat and poultry processing. “Capitalism without competition isn’t capitalism, it’s exploitation,” Biden said. “That’s what we’re seeing in meat and poultry.” Biden joined Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Attorney General ...

  Bloomberg German joblessness continued to fall in December before the country tightened restrictions to ward off a wave of infections sparked by the omicron variant. Unemployment in Europe’s largest economy falls by 23,000, beating economists’ forecast for a drop of 15,000. The jobless rate slid to 5.2%. “The labour market developed well towards the end of the year,” said ...

  Bloomberg The French government said it will ease access to crisis funds and could delay loan repayments for businesses struggling with a drop in activity as the surge in omicron cases hits tourism and leisure activities. “We are standing by firms and workers in difficulty,” Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said after meeting with representatives of business groups. “This ...