Dec 13 (Reuters) – Wall Street fell from record highs on Monday, with shares of Carnival Corp and several airlines tumbling as investors worried about the Omicron coronavirus variant ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting later this week. Travel-related stocks fell, with the fast-spreading variant accounting for around 40% of COVID-19 infections in London and at least one death in the United Kingdom. Carnival Corp, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Royal Caribbean Cruises all dropped more than 5%, while the S&P 1500 airlines index shed 3.1%. “It’s transportation, restaurants, all the things that if it got bad enough that we started putting new restrictions on people, it would not be good for them,” said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments in Atlanta. “They have all been bid over the past several months by the idea that we were going to get back to business as usual.” Seven of the 11 major S&P 500 sector indexes fell, with only defensive sectors, including consumer staples, utilities and real estate gaining. The CBOE Market Volatility index, a gauge for investor anxiety, was up 1.75 points. In afternoon trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.7% at 35,720.1 points, while the S&P 500 lost 0.63% to 4,682.38.The Nasdaq Composite dropped 1% to 15,474.32. Apple Inc dipped 0.7%, even after J.P. Morgan raised its price target on the iPhone maker to the highest on Wall Street. The company is close to becoming the first in the world to hit $3 trillion in market value. Investors expect an increasingly hawkish tone out of the Federal Reserve’s two-day meeting that wraps up on Wednesday. The U.S. central bank is expected to signal a faster wind-down of asset purchases, which could also usher closer a start to interest rate hikes. “Everyone is focused on the Fed this week and what guidance we get in terms of bond purchases and interest rates. There’s an expectation that there will be an acceleration of tapering, and there’s a little anxiety leading up to that,” said Ryan Jacob, chief portfolio manager at Jacob Internet Fund. A Reuters poll of economists sees the central bank hiking key interest rates from near zero to 0.25%-0.50% in the third quarter of next year, followed by another in the fourth quarter. Positive updates about vaccines and antibody cocktails to combat the new COVID-19 variant, along with a recent reading on inflation that was in line with consensus, pushed the S&P 500 index to a record closing high on Friday. Pfizer Inc rose about 4% after it agreed to acquire Arena Pharmaceuticals in a $6.7 billion all-cash deal. Arena’s shares surged about 80%. Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 2.45-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.55-to-1 ratio favored decliners. The S&P 500 posted 47 new 52-week highs and 4 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 28 new highs and 286 new lows.
Israeli study finds Pfizer COVID-19 booster protects against Omicron
JERUSALEM, Dec 11 (Reuters) – Israeli researchers said on Saturday they found that a three-shot course of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine provided significant protection against the new Omicron variant. The findings were similar to those presented by BioNTech and Pfizer earlier in the week, which were an early signal that booster shots could be key to protect against infection from the newly identified variant. The study, carried out by Sheba Medical Center and the Health Ministry’s Central Virology Laboratory, compared the blood of 20 people who had received two vaccine doses 5-6 months earlier to the same number of individuals who had received a booster a month before. “People who received the second dose 5 or 6 months ago do not have any neutralization ability against the Omicron. While they do have some against the Delta (strain),” Gili Regev-Yochay, director of the Infectious Diseases Unit at Sheba, told reporters. “The good news is that with the booster dose it increases about a hundred fold. There is a significant protection of the booster dose. It is lower than the neutralization ability against the Delta, about four times lower,” she said. The Israeli team said they worked with the actual virus while the companies used what is known as a pseudovirus, which was bio-engineered to have the hallmark mutations of Omicron. The Israeli research follows a study from South Africa that found the Omicron variant can partially evade protection from two doses.
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Dr Michael Cohen discusses the importance of Vitamin D and zinc for the optimisation of the immune system. Vitamin K2 is also used to distribute calcium to the correct tissues. explanation of preventing and minimising infection by enabling the amazing natural immune response. NN: We put a lot of time, money and research into our Supplements. Watch the video and then go to our data sheet. CoronaVit Data Sheet You will see why we line up with the supplements spoken about and dosages. If you would like to purchase click this link: Salavida Products
Israeli study finds Pfizer COVID-19 booster protects against Omicron
JERUSALEM, Dec 11 (Reuters) – Israeli researchers said on Saturday they found that a three-shot course of the Pfizer/BioNTech (PFE.N), (22UAy.DE) COVID-19 vaccine provided significant protection against the new Omicron variant. The findings were similar to those presented by BioNTech and Pfizer earlier in the week, which were an early signal that booster shots could be key to protect against infection from the newly identified variant. The study, carried out by Sheba Medical Center and the Health Ministry’s Central Virology Laboratory, compared the blood of 20 people who had received two vaccine doses 5-6 months earlier to the same number of individuals who had received a booster a month before. “People who received the second dose 5 or 6 months ago do not have any neutralization ability against the Omicron. While they do have some against the Delta (strain),” Gili Regev-Yochay, director of the Infectious Diseases Unit at Sheba, told reporters. “The good news is that with the boosster dose it increases about a hundred fold. There is a significant protection of the booster dose. It is lower than the neutralization ability against the Delta, about four times lower,” she said. The Israeli team said they worked with the actual virus while the companies used what is known as a pseudovirus, which was bio-engineered to have the hallmark mutations of Omicron. The Israeli research follows a study from South Africa that found the Omicron variant can partially evade protection from two doses. NN: It has been conclusive since August, You need to be sure to get your 3rd booster shot NOW! I do not like what i am seeing. People who have had only one shot are getting infected and are dieting.
S. Korea’s critical COVID cases at record high
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea reported a record daily 5,352 new COVID-19 infections and 70 deaths, while a nationwide total of nine cases of the Omicron variant have been confirmed, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said on Saturday. The government on Friday announced that people visiting restaurants, cinemas and other public spaces will have to show vaccine passes. It is also reducing the limit on private gatherings to six people in the greater Seoul area, from 10 currently, and to eight from 12 for those residing outside of the capital, starting next Monday. The hospitalisation rate was rising rapidly led by severe cases of COVID-19, with the number of serious and critical patients at 752 as of Friday, KDCA said. South Korea has also confirmed three additional Omicron cases, bringing the total to nine after a fully vaccinated couple tested positive for the variant after travelling from Nigeria last week. To fend off the new variant, authorities on Friday announced a 10-day mandatory quarantine requirement for all inbound travellers for two weeks, halting exemptions given earlier to fully vaccinated people.
South Korea has been battling the worst wave of infections since July, when the daily cases stood below 2,000 until the government switched to “living with COVID-19”. The cases hit 5,000s for the first time this week, putting a strain on the healthcare system.
The country, which has fully inoculated 91.7% of its adult population, has so far reported a total of 467,907 COVID-19 infections, with 3,809 deaths since the start of the pandemic. NN: S.Korea has amoung the worlds highest vaccination rates. This is truly disturbing news. We are running down a lot of information. To early to conjecture on where this is going.
Gove: UK faces ‘deeply concerning situation’…..Omicron will be dominant variant by early next week, professor warns…….. People “very likely” to come in contact with Omicron holders, professor warns….
30% of cases in London are now Omicron as Govt advised to bring in tougher restrictions Boosters urged in face of Omicron spread
he UK’s top public health officials have advised ministers that “stringent national measures” need to be imposed by 18 December to avoid Covid hospitalisations surpassing last winter’s peak, according to reports. Sajid Javid, the health secretary, received a presentation from the UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA) on Tuesday warning that even if the new Omicro variant leads to less serious disease than Delta, it risks overwhelming the NHS with 5,000 people admitted to hospital a day, the Guardian reported. It comes as Communities Secretary Michael Gove said Omicron already makes up 30 per cent of new Covid cases in London.Department of Health figures show London’s infection rate have risen in all 32 boroughs of London – with 11 seeing a leap of over a third in a week. Omicron could overtake Delta as the dominant Covid-19 variant as early as next week, an expert has warned. Professor Jason Leitch, the National Clinical Director of the Scottish Government, told Sky News: “All four countries are managing this the way they think they should. It’s not any different. “There may be slight variations regionally around England but you’re pretty much where we are.” He said Omicron will be the dominant variant by the beginning of next week. “We’ve done this four times now… we’ve had four variants. Unfortunately two of them have come four weeks before Christmas. You couldn’t make this virus up, it’s like fiction.” Eleanor Riley, a professor of immunology and infectious disease, said Omicron is spreading so fast that people are “very likely” to meet someone infected with the Covid-19 variant unless they are “living the life of a hermit”. The University of Edinburgh academic also warned “a lot of people” could still end up in hospital even if the coronavirus mutation proves to provoke milder symptoms than the Delta variant. Prof Riley told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Omicron is spreading so quickly that, I think, unless you are living the life of a hermit, you are very likely to come across it in the next few weeks.“I don’t think anyone should be going around thinking they are not going to catch it, I think that situation has changed.” She added: “There is a huge ‘if’ about this, ‘is it milder?’. I think it is very dangerous to compare data from South Africa, say, to the UK. NN: We are at a point we could describe the worst of all worlds. The Delta mutation is running wild and deaths are increasing And to add to our torment the Omicron is coming on strong. How deadly is it? the truth is its to early to tell. We are on it like feathers on a chicken
Brian Williams warns of darkness spreading during final broadcast as NBC anchor
After 28 years as an anchor with NBC networks, Brian Williams called it quits on Thursday during his MSNBC show The 11th Hour. While his final episode was filled with old colleagues and recurring guests celebrating his career and paying him lip service, his final message was filled with warning. “My biggest worry is for my country,” Williams said. “I’m not a liberal or a conservative. I’m an institutionalist. I believe in this place. And in my love of my country I yield to no one, but the darkness on the edge of town has spread to roads and highways and neighborhoods.” “Grown men and women who swore an oath to our constitution, elected by our constituents, possessing the kinds of college degrees I can only dream of have decided to join the mob and become something they are not, hoping we somehow forget who they were,” Williams continued. “They’ve decided to burn it all down with us inside. That should scare you to no end as much as it scares an aging volunteer fireman.” While Williams made it clear he has no immediate plans post-MSNBC, he did leave the door open for a possible return to television at some point. He said, “I will probably find it impossible to be silent and stay away from you and lights and cameras after I experiment with relaxation and find out what I’ve missed and what’s out there.” Williams’s career as a journalist has been tumultuous towards the end. While anchor for NBC’s flagship Nightly News, he was suspended and ultimately reassigned for exaggerating a harrowing helicopter ride in Iraq. Despite the professional setback, he is one of the more beloved anchors of the past 20 years. The mash-up raps of his from The Tonight Show have garnered tens of millions clicks online. “As a proud New Jersey native, this is where I get to say, regrets, I’ve had a few, too few to mention,” Williams said in his final minutes on the show. “What a ride it’s been. Where else, how else was a kid like me going to meet presidents and kings and the occasional rock star?” NN: Heed the warnings well. The lefty liberals are taking control of media. What media they do not control their are censoring. Remember the managers of social medial are lefty anti fossil fuel climate change radicals. Unfortunately the conservative media has been seized by the radical right stupid conspiracy providers of doom.
US inflation at 6.8% in November, highest since 1982
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for all items in the United States jumped 6.8% on an annual basis in November, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Friday. The figure marks an increase from the annual inflation rate of 6.2% recorded in October and is at the highest level since 1982.
The index for all items except food and energy was up 4.9% year on year, while food prices rose 6.1% on an annual basis and energy prices soared 33.3%.
On a monthly basis, the CPI for All Urban Consumers added 0.8% compared to October, while the index less food and energy gained 0.5%.
OPEC+ lifted November oil output by 0.5M bpd – survey
LONDON, (Reuters) – The increase in OPEC’s oil output in November has again undershot the rise planned under a deal with allies, a Reuters survey found on Tuesday, bringing a lack of capacity in some producers into focus ahead of a policy meeting this week. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) pumped 27.74 million barrels per day (bpd) in November, the survey found, a rise of 220,000 bpd from the previous month but below the 254,000 increase allowed under the supply deal. OPEC and its allies, a group known as OPEC+, are gradually relaxing 2020’s output cuts as demand recovers from the pandemic. But many smaller producers can’t raise supply and others have been wary of pumping too much in case of renewed COVID-19 setbacks. “The pressure is growing on OPEC+,” said Carsten Fritsch, analyst at Commerzbank. Stepping up production by 400,000 bpd in January was “virtually unimaginable in view of the latest market developments,” he said. The OPEC+ agreement allowed for a 400,000 bpd production increase in November from all members, of which about 253,000 bpd is shared by the 10 OPEC members covered by the deal, OPEC figures seen by Reuters show. With output undershooting the planned increase, OPEC’s compliance with its pledged cuts increased to 120% in November, the survey found, from 118% a month earlier. The biggest rises in November came from OPEC’s top two producers, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, which both boosted output largely as promised according to the agreement. Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Algeria also made increases as called for by their higher November quotas. Nigerian output, often hit by unplanned outages, recovered in November as a force majeure was lifted.Output declined or did not increase in Angola, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, the survey found, owing to a lack of capacity to produce more. The biggest decline – 50,000 bpd – was in Angola, where exports hit a record low during the month according to tanker schedules. The second largest was in Libya, one of the countries exempt from OPEC supply curbs, due to pipeline maintenance. Output in Iran, which has raised exports since the fourth quarter despite U.S. sanctions, was steady in November. Talks to revive its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which would allow a larger export recovery, resumed this week
EU drugs regulator says data supports vaccine boosters after three months
In major shift, EU says vaccine boosters should be considered for all adults
- EU agency says people above 40 years should be prioritised
- Boosters should be given at least six months after vaccination
- Guidance not binding but likely to inform changes to COVID pass
BRUSSELS, Nov 24 (Reuters) – The head of the European Union’s public health agency Andrea Ammon said on Wednesday that COVID-19 vaccine boosters should be considered for all adults, with priority for those above 40 years, in a major change to the agency’s guidance.Recommendations issued by the European Centre for Disease prevention and Control (ECDC) are not binding on EU governments but are used to make health policy decisions.”Booster doses should be considered for all adult individuals prioritising persons above 40 years of age,” Ammon said in a recorded statement, noting that boosters should be administered at least six months after completing the primary vaccine schedule. In its previous guidance issued in September alongside the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the ECDC said there was no urgent need for the administration of booster doses to fully vaccinated individuals in the general population, but suggested that additional doses should be considered for people with weakened immune systems and could be used as a precaution for older frail individuals.”Available evidence emerging from Israel and the UK shows a significant increase in protection against infection and severe disease following a booster dose in all age groups in the short term,” the ECDC said in a report published on Wednesday.It advised giving boosters to all adults with priority “for those aged 40 years and over”.FRAGMENTED EUROPEAmmon said that boosters will increase protection against infections caused by waning immunity and “could potentially reduce the transmission in the population and prevent additional hospitalisations and deaths”.She advised countries with low levels of vaccinations to speed up their rollouts and warned of high risks of a further spike in deaths and hospitalisations in Europe in December and January if the recommended measures were not introduced.The European Commission is expected to take the advice on boosters into consideration when proposing changes to the use of COVID-19 certificates later this week, officials said.”Boosters should be available for adults, with priority for people over 40 and vulnerable people,” the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said on Twitter after the ECDC’s report was published.Many EU countries have already begun giving booster doses to their populations but are using different criteria to select groups that are prioritised and using different intervals between primary vaccinations and boosters.Austria, which has this week reintroduced a lockdown amid a spike in cases, has decided to give boosters after four months, whereas in Italy the additional dose can be administered after five months.The ECDC also recommended countries apply minor restrictive measures, such as the use of face masks where physical distance is not possible and teleworking.It said that travel restrictions were unlikely to have a significant impact because the virus is already present in all EU countries.It also said that there was limited evidence of decreased transmission caused by the use of COVID-19 certificates to access restaurants, cinemas or museums – measures that about 20 EU countries are currently applying.