Europe

* The United Kingdom is drawing up plans under which people will not be legally bound to self-isolate after catching COVID-19, The Telegraph reported.

* Thousands of protesters packed Amsterdam's streets on Sunday in opposition to the government-imposed COVID-19 measures and vaccination campaign as virus infections hit a new record.

* Credit Suisse Chairman Antonio Horta-Osorio has resigned after flouting COVID-19 quarantine rules.

* Over a thousand people marched in Budapest protesting against COVID-19 inoculation at a rally organised by the far-right Our Homeland Movement.

* Austria's government proposed setting the minimum age for mandatory coronavirus vaccinations against COVID-19 at 18 and rolling out the programme in stages from Feb. 1.

Americas

* The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended donning "the most protective mask you can" while stopping short of advocating nationwide usage of N95 respirators.

* Hundreds of students in Boston and Chicago walked out of classes in protests demanding a switch to remote learning.

* High demand for groceries combined with soaring freight costs and Omicron-related labour shortages are creating a new round of backlogs at processed food and fresh produce companies, leading to empty supermarket shelves at major retailers across the United States.

* Peru's Health Minister Hernando Cevallos has called on COVID-19 vaccine companies to extend expiration dates past the current three months to reduce the risk of losing doses.

Asia-Pacific

* Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has left the door open for Novak Djokovic to compete at next year's Australian Open despite the tennis superstar facing an automatic three-year ban from entering the country.

* Beijing will require travellers to get a COVID-19 test within 72 hours of arrival in the Chinese capital, as the city readies to stage the Winter Olympics next month.

Africa and Middle East

* Israel's cabinet approved additional state aid to help bail out airlines suffering another pandemic blow with the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant, the finance and transportation ministries said.

Medical Developments

* India's Gennova Biopharmaceuticals is working on an Omicron-specific COVID-19 vaccine candidate that could be ready in a month or two, a person with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Economic Impact

* Share markets were choppy as a slew of Chinese economic data confirmed the deadening effect of coronavirus restrictions on consumer spending, prompting Beijing to again ease monetary policy.

* China's economy rebounded in 2021 from its pandemic-induced slump helped by robust exports but weak consumption at the year-end and a property slowdown point to cooling momentum and the need for more policy support.

* Frantic oil buying driven by supply outages and signs the Omicron variant won't be as disruptive as feared has pushed some crude grades to multi-year highs, suggesting the rally in Brent futures could be sustained a while longer, traders said.