The Latest Breaking News from Omicron

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news

The fast fashion chain has launched a consultation with staff as part of plans to simplify its UK retail management structure.

French PM says from February work from home guidance will be changed and nightclubs reopen; Austria will have Europe’s first universal jabs mandate

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Thursday that restrictions will be tightened across the country if there is a community transmission of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus but she ruled out lockdowns.

"We need to be on guard, and ready," Jacinda Ardern says.

Consumer-facing businesses felt the brunt of the variant's impact, with the tourism, hospitality and transportation acutely affected

"We are not out of the woods, and we need people to be very careful over these next few weeks," Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said. Gov. J.B. Pritzker observed, "I am cautiously optimistic about this decline, but there are an awful lot of people still battling for…

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Matt McCracken, who is a tetraplegic, is vulnerable if he is home without a carer, but finding one is now a dire problem for many people with disabilities as the Omicron outbreak spreads.