Business

Japan has stopped new bookings onto incoming flights after identifying the first cases of the Omicron strain of Covid-19. The country has also tightened its quarantine requirements for all arriving passengers, and extended a ban on non-citizens coming from 10 countries in southern Africa. Travel companies have seen their shares tumble in recent days as governments tighten border rules in response to the new variant. Also today, Australia's economy feels the pinch from the recent lockdowns.

The omicron variant of Covid-19 has added a fresh layer of uncertainty to global stock markets. Rabobank's Senior Market Strategist Christian Lawrence talks us through the latest volatility, and what he expects from central banks in the coming weeks. Also in the show: India's coal mines could hamper the country's efforts to reduce carbon emissions.

Jack Dorsey is stepping down as CEO of Twitter. Under his leadership, the firm became one of the world's most iconic social media companies, but faced criticism over lagging growth and its approach to free speech. Also, the Omicron coronavirus variant continues to spook global investors and a virtual superyacht sells for the tidy sum of $650,000.

The chief executive of Twitter is stepping down, 15 years after he co-founded the social media platform. Jack Dorsey will be replaced by current Chief Technology Officer Parag Agrawal. Twitter shares surged as much as 11 percent earlier before being briefly suspended. Also on the show: Canada taps into its emergency stockpile of maple syrup to offset high demand and a disappointing harvest.

International travel picked up over the summer, but Covid-19 is still expected to cost the global tourism industry some €1.8 trillion in 2021. Also, French finance minister Bruno Le Maire remains optimistic about the recovery despite concerns over the Omicron variant, and farmers in India continue their protest movement despite concessions from the government.

Black Friday was born in the US, but this day of sales and promotions has become an increasingly global event. Also, Turkish consumers grapple with a plunge in the lira, residents of Brussels awaken to a city without Uber, and British fair competition regulators win some new pledges from Google.

France's popular, government-regulated tax-free savings account scheme, known as the "Livret A", is likely to raise interest rates in February after recording the biggest deposit outflow since 2014.

After hitting historic lows on Tuesday, Turkey's currency has recovered slightly. The lira has lost 40% of its value against the US dollar since the start of the year, amid a series of controversial interest rate cuts and double-digit inflation.

The US has announced it will release 50 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserves, in coordination with several major consumer nations including China and India.

Despite pushback from some Democrats, Joe Biden says Jerome Powell will remain at the US central bank for a second term. The decision ends weeks of speculation in financial markets over what's one of the world's most important economic policy posts.