LONDON (Reuters) – Sterling held below a 2-1/2 year high on Thursday as speculation swirled that the Bank of England could bring in sub-zero benchmark interest rates earlier to counter the economic hit from a third coronavirus national lockdown.FILE PHOTO: Pound Sterling notes and change are seen inside a cash resgister in a coffee shop in Manchester, Britain, Septem,ber 21, […]

Slideshow ( 3 images )LONDON (Reuters) – Britain is making preparations in case London is overwhelmed by COVID infections, health minister Matt Hancock said on Thursday, saying a so-called “Nightingale” field hospital will be ready to relieve pressure on the health service. Asked about a report that National Health Service (NHS) hospitals in London could be overwhelmed in two weeks, […]

FILE PHOTO: A woman walks next to a poster reading “The best team. With distance.” in front of a BMW factory as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Munich, Germany, December 9, 2020. REUTERS/Andreas Gebert/File PhotoBRUSSELS (Reuters) – Economic sentiment in the euro zone improved as expected in December due to less gloom in industry and among […]

DUBAI (Reuters) -Saudi Arabia will move faster than its allies to reconcile with Qatar, sources familiar with the matter said, aiming to impress the incoming Biden administration by ending what the West sees as a parochial dispute that benefits only mutual foe Iran.FILE PHOTO: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani during […]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – When you sit down at the end of the day with a glass of Johnnie Walker or Captain Morgan, you probably do not think much about all the water that goes into that glass.A Guinness beer tap is seen inside The Greenwich Pensioner pub, which was closed to slow the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), […]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Hundreds of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday in a bid to overturn his election defeat, occupying the symbol of American democracy and forcing Congress to suspend a session to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.An explosion caused by a police munition is seen while supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump gather in front […]

NEW YORK/LONDON/SYDNEY (Reuters) – Investors are looking ahead to the next U.S. administration after Democrats won control of Congress on Wednesday, a political shift that could strengthen the hand of President-elect Joe Biden in pushing through policies such as more fiscal spending and higher taxes.A Fulton County election worker puts absentee ballots in a scanner as election observers look on, […]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Asian stocks perked up on Thursday as investors remained confident that violence in Washington would not disrupt a legitimate transition to a new presidency or derail political support for a U.S. economic recovery.FILE PHOTO: A man wearing a facial mask, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, stands in front of an electric board showing Nikkei (top […]

FILE PHOTO: 5G active antenna units with logos of China Mobile and Huawei are seen in front of a National People’s Congress (NPC) conference center in Luoyang, Henan province, China February 27, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer(Reuters) – S&P Dow Jones Indices said late on Wednesday it will remove the American Depositary Receipts (ADR) of three Chinese telecom companies, China Mobile Ltd,, China […]