London stocks were rising in holiday-thinned trading on Friday, the last session before an extended Christmas break.

The London Stock Exchange will close around midday, and remain closed until Wednesday.

"The U.K. index is enjoying its fourth day of gains, trading at six-week highs and inching closer to the next major resistance hurdle at 7,400," said Victoria Scholar, head of investment at interactive investor, in a note to clients. Gains for banks, pharmaceutical groups, miners and energy names were supporting the main index.

Looking back at some of the year's best performers, Scholar highlighted Ashtead. Shares of the industrial equipment rental company are up more than 70%, outperforming the FTSE 100 and the best performer on the FTSE 350 over the past decade, she said, citing data from Refinitiv.

"It reported a record performance in its latest earnings and upgraded its full-year guidance with rental revenue benefiting from the global economic reopening this year," said the strategist. Ashtead shares slipped 0.4% on Friday.

At the other end was online grocer and logistics group Ocado, "despite kicking off the year on a positive note after 2020's outperformance for the stay-at-home basket," she said . "The stock is down almost 40% since the peak in February as the reopening trade hit food delivery businesses." Ocado shares rose 1.7% on Friday.

Travel stocks continued to rise, repeating action seen through much of the week.

That's even amid holiday travel disruptions due to industrial action on some trains, and a spread of COVID-19 among essential workers. In the U.S., United Airlines and Delta have already canceled dozens of flights over the weekend, partly due to cases impacting crews.

A preliminary study from the U.K. Health Security Agency released Thursday showed the omicron variant of the coronavirus resulted in 50% to 70% fewer hospitalizations than delta. However, it also showed that vaccine boosters began to wane after roughly 10 weeks, though protection against hospitalizations and severe disease is believed to hold up.

The U.K. saw another record breaking cases on Thursday, with 119,789 reported. Contagion fears have hit the hospitality sector hard due to cancellations of holiday parties and gatherings. The government may announce new restrictions after the Christmas break.

U.S. markets are closed and will reopen on Monday.

The U.S. dollar is likely to firm in 2022 as the Federal Reserve prepares for a potential interest-rate rise as early as March, TD Securities said.

"With recent Fed speak indicating that [a rate rise in] March is live, we continue to think risk/reward favors respecting that outcome and hence supporting USD firmness in the new year," analysts at the bank said.

In the meantime, they expect EUR/USD to consolidate in the 1.12-1.14 range, though they see a substantial risk of a break below that range as talk of balance-sheet runoff should pressure U.S. real rates higher.

U.K. borrowing costs over a 10-year period trade near a one-month high as fears over fresh Omicron-related restrictions linger. "The country is gripped by fears of a renewed lockdown," said Societe Generale's Klaus Baader.

The widespread expectation is that some fresh restrictions will be introduced in the days immediately after Christmas to quell the rapid spread of the Omicron variant through the country, he said, noting that the U.K. government has already been advised to introduce a two-week circuit-breaker lockdown.

January business survey data should provide "a serious idea of the likely impact," he adds. The 10-year gilt yield trades last at 0.918%, according to Tradeweb.

The Brent crude price is weighed by the continued spread of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 in Europe at a time when Chinese growth is also slowing, UOB said.

Given the uncertainty over Omicron's negative impact on global energy demand, the Singapore bank downgrades its Brent crude oil outlook from to neutral from positive. It forecasts Brent prices to average $70/bbl for 1H of 2022 and $75/bbl for 2H of 2022.

Gold edged higher in the Asian morning session and may have a bright outlook next year. The precious metal is expected to have a strong 2022, as risks to the outlook remain elevated, Oanda said.

This will probably result in more policy easing from Beijing, the Fed taking a dovish stance on rate increases in the summer and a weakening USD as investors bet on Europe's growth potential, Oanda added.

New U.K. Study Reinforces Conclusion That Omicron Causes Less Severe Disease

LONDON-People infected with the Omicron variant of coronavirus are between 50% to 70% less likely to be admitted to the hospital than those who caught earlier strains, according to a new U.K. study that adds to a growing body of evidence of Omicron's reduced severity in populations with high levels of immunity.

The analysis from England, published Thursday by the U.K.'s Health Security Agency, follows studies in Scotland and South Africa that also pointed to a substantially lower risk of hospitalization with Omicron than with more established variants, including Delta.

HSBC to Buy India Mutual Fund Business for $425 Million

HSBC Holdings PLC has agreed to buy the Indian mutual funds business of L&T Finance Holdings Ltd. for $425 million as part of efforts to build its wealth management business in Asia.

HSBC plans to merge the mutual funds business with its existing asset-management operations in India, which had $1.6 billion assets under management as of end-September.

U.S., Russia Move Closer to Talks Over Ukraine as Moscow Masses Troops

The U.S. and Russia moved closer to convening talks over tensions surrounding Ukraine, though American officials warned that Moscow is continuing to build up its forces for possible military action against its neighbor.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that U.S. and Russian officials would meet in January in Geneva. The U.S. has also proposed talks, and the two sides are still trying to sort out differences over how to structure the negotiations and which channels to use, U.S. officials said.

Saudis Begin Making Ballistic Missiles With Chinese Help

Saudi Arabia has imported sensitive missile technology from the Chinese military and is manufacturing its own ballistic missiles, according to Saudi advisers and officials familiar with U.S. intelligence, raising new worries of a Middle East arms race.

The Saudi effort is the latest in a series of moves by U.S. allies in the Middle East to increase military cooperation with China in a trend that has angered the Biden administration during a period of heightened animosity between Washington and Beijing.

U.N. Plans $8 Billion Fund to Restart Afghanistan's Economy

The United Nations is planning an $8 billion program of aid and services in Afghanistan for next year, taking on many government functions at a time when the Taliban regime remains under economic sanctions and lacks diplomatic recognition, according to international officials.

From providing hot meals for children in schools, to generating jobs or finding ways to pay Afghanistan's energy bills to its neighbors, the U.N.'s plan would move beyond its current humanitarian mission to rebuilding governing systems and social services.

Russian Guns-for-Hire Fill Void in Africa and Elsewhere as Western Militaries Pull Back

Russian mercenaries have deployed to the African country of Mali, European governments said, opening a new front in a confrontation with the West at the same time as Moscow has gathered military forces around Ukraine.

The deployment comes after French forces in Mali earlier this month left a base in Timbuktu, part of a military drawdown after struggling to quash an Islamist insurgency.

Putin Blames the West for Ukraine Tensions During News Conference

Russian President Vladimir Putin's customary year-end audience with the Moscow media was more closely watched than usual for signs of what plans he might have in mind for Ukraine, as he again denied seeking a conflict with the West and defended what he called his country's need to protect itself against NATO's attempts to encroach on its doorstep.

For months now Russia has been massing tens of thousands of troops on its border with Ukraine, worrying leaders in both Kyiv and Western capitals that Mr. Putin was aiming to reprise a military campaign in 2014 when Moscow annexed the Crimean Peninsula.

Two Years Into Covid-19 Pandemic, Elderly Italians Again Face Christmas Alone

ROME-Manuela Avondoglio hoped to spend this Christmas with her 79-year-old mother, unlike a year ago. Instead, the resurgence of Covid-19 in Europe means another festive season in isolation.

Ms. Avondoglio and her sister placed their mother, who has Alzheimer's disease, in a nursing home a few months before the pandemic began. In the beginning, they used to visit her every day and she seemed happy, Ms. Avondoglio said.

Omicron Starts to Slow U.S. Economy as Consumer Spending Flags

Signs are mounting that the U.S. economy is losing some steam as the Omicron variant of the Covid-19 virus spreads rapidly through parts of the country.

The number of diners seated at restaurants nationwide was down 15% in the week ended Dec. 22 from the same period in 2019, a steeper decline than in late November, data from reservations site OpenTable show. U.S. hotel occupancy was at 53.8% for the week ended Dec. 18, slightly below the previous week's level, according to STR, a global hospitality data and analytics company.

U.S. Oil-Rig Count Rises in Latest Week

The number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose by five in the latest week to 480, according to oil-field services company Baker Hughes Co.

The count was 216 higher than this time last year, when there were 264 active rigs, Baker Hughes said Thursday.

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