By Guy Faulconbridge and Dmitry Antonov LONDON/MOSCOW (Reuters) – Britain urged Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday to “step back from the brink” over Ukraine, warning that any incursion would trigger sanctions against companies and people with …
Nasdaq narrowly misses worst January ever as Wall Street gains
By David French (Reuters) – U.S. stocks closed higher on Monday, at the end of a volatile month for Wall Street where the tech-heavy Nasdaq narrowly avoided its worst ever start to the year and the S&P 500 recorded its weakest January performance since…
Explainer-Scientists on alert over rising cases caused by Omicron cousin BA.2
By Julie Steenhuysen CHICAGO (Reuters) – The highly transmissible Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus – the most common form of which is known as BA.1 – now accounts for nearly all of the coronavirus infections globally, although dramatic surges in…
Omicron subvariant BA.2 more infectious than “original”, Danish study finds
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – The BA.2 subvariant of the Omicron coronavirus variant, which has quickly taken over in Denmark, is more transmissible than the more common BA.1 and more able to infect vaccinated people, a Danish study has found. The study, whic…
UAE blocks missile strike as Israeli president visits
By Mahmoud Mourad and Alexander Cornwell DUBAI (Reuters) -The United Arab Emirates said on Monday it intercepted a ballistic missile fired by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement as the UAE hosted Israeli President Isaac Herzog on his first visit https…
Explainer-How does Merck’s COVID-19 pill compare to Pfizer’s?
By Deena Beasley (Reuters) – Rival antiviral pills from Pfizer Inc and Merck & Co that demonstrated efficacy in trials of adults with COVID-19 who are at high risk of serious illness are now both in use. The drugs are being studied to see if they can p…
Lawmakers urge U.S. Olympic officials to defend outspoken athletes at Beijing Games
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Lawmakers on Monday urged U.S. Olympic officials to prepare to defend American athletes from possible Chinese government retaliation should they choose to speak out about China’s rights abuses during next month’s Beijing Winter O…
Report criticises lockdown parties at UK PM Johnson’s office
By William James and Kylie MacLellan LONDON (Reuters) -An inquiry into COVID-19 lockdown-breaking parties at Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office and residence said on Monday some of these should not have taken place, and serious failures of leadershi…
US prepared to sanction Russian elites close to Putin if Russia invades Ukraine
By Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States and its allies have prepared a list of Russian elites in or near Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle to hit with economic sanctions should Russia invade Ukraine, a senior administrat…
Exclusive-U.S. diabetes deaths top 100,000 for second straight year, federal panel urges new strategy
By Chad Terhune and Robin Respaut (Reuters) – More than 100,000 Americans died from diabetes in 2021, marking the second consecutive year for that grim milestone and spurring a call for a federal mobilization similar to the fight against HIV/AIDS. The …