FTSE 100 eked out a small early gain as investors took a calm view on the latest Omicron headlines. London’s blue chip index was up 10 points at 7,302 in early trades.
Staff in England should now work from home if they can, the government advised today as it battles to tackle a new ‘tidal wave’ of potential Covid-19 infections. Hospitality groups reacted with dismay to the news though PM Boris Johnson said the country is facing an “Omicron emergency”.
More British manufacturers are raising prices that at any time since 2000, new research from accountant BDO has revealed. A net balance of 52% of firms had increased their prices in the final three months of the year, said the survey.
Purplebricks (AIM:PURP) (Purplebricks (AIM:PURP)) Group PLC said it faces a significant financial hit from how it has been registering tenants’ deposits. Early provisional estimates by the online estate agent suggest a potential risk in the range of £2m-9mln, though reports last night had suggested a total bill of as high as £30mln.
Among the small caps, Feedback has received funding from Amazon Web Services to support its cloud-based tuberculosis screening programme in India. The screening solution will see X-ray images pushed by Feedback's Bleepa Box straight to the cloud.
Guild Esports has announced that it has partnered with Sony (NYSE:SNE)'s PlayStation to create a FIFA22 tournament, named 'The Guild Academy Challenge.’ The event is open to all PlayStation 4 FIFA22 players across Europe.
OKYO Pharma said its drug candidate OK-101 also shows potent ocular pain reducing property. Trialled on a mouse, it established the potential to treat both pain and inflammation, the most common symptoms of dry eye, with a single drug.
