Britain's government stood accused Wednesday of actively undermining talks with union leaders in a bid to encourage strike action and depress workers' wages across the economy.

The UK government will on Tuesday introduce proposals mandating "minimum safety levels" during strikes, angering unions which have branded it "undemocratic" and threatened legal challenges.

The union has organised unprecedented walkouts by nurses in recent weeks -- the first in its 106-year history.

Businesses in the UK are reinventing the way they run their organizations as industry dynamics change due to unprecedented inflation in the UK.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Sunday he was willing to discuss pay rises for nurses ahead of a meeting with public sector trade union leaders in an effort to end the biggest wave of industrial disputes in decades.

The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits dropped to a three-month low last week while layoffs fell 43% in December, pointing to a still-tight labor market that could force the Federal Reserve to keep hiking interest rates.

Wall Street was set to tap the brakes on Thursday as upbeat jobs data after a firm message from the Fed that it won't be cutting interest rates any time soon offset China's latest reopening plans.

British businesses are gloomy about prospects for 2023 as they face the likelihood of a surge energy bills and ongoing post-Brexit trade difficulties, the British Chambers of Commerce said late on Wednesday.

US Republican leader Kevin McCarthy was a simple up-or-down vote from realizing his dream of becoming one of the country's top statesmen on Tuesday -- in a cliffhanger worthy of TV drama "House of Cards" that could as easily end with his career in tatters.

Heavy falls in stock and bond markets over the last year have cut the combined value of the world's sovereign wealth and public pension funds for the first time ever - and to the tune of $2.2 trillion, an annual study of the sector has estimated.

With foreign workers making up the vast bulk of private sector jobs in the United Arab Emirates, the Gulf's second-largest economy wants to boost opportunities for its own citizens.

The king also commended charities for their "extraordinary work in the most difficult circumstances".

The Biden administration on Wednesday unveiled new curbs on technology exports to Russia's Wagner military group, in a bid to further choke off supplies to the contractor over its role in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

UK nurses on Tuesday staged a second one-day strike amid an increasingly acrimonious fight with the government for better wages and warnings that patient safety could be jeopardised.

Euro zone business activity shrank at the slowest pace in four months in December, suggesting a likely recession ahead will be shallower than previously thought, a survey showed on Friday, while prices rose at the most modest rate in about a year.

Strike action scheduled to begin on December 29 remains in place pending the outcome of the ballot of members.

The World Bank's private investment arm on Thursday said it had launched a $2 billion support package for Ukraine to help build the resilience of the Ukrainian private sector devastated by Russia's war and to prepare for reconstruction.

UK nurses stage unprecedented walkout

British inflation slowed more than expected in November but remained near the highest level in more than 40 years, official data showed Wednesday, as a cost-of-living crisis sparks fresh UK strikes.

CGI opens a new office in Newcastle as the multinational IT company aims to foster networking in the North East region through its expansion.

Average pay for British public sector workers fell to a 19-year low in October, after adjusting for inflation, according to official data on Tuesday that underscored why so many are going on strike.

The United Kingdom recorded the highest number of working days lost to labour disputes in October for more than 10 years, official data showed on Tuesday, as employees went on strike to demand higher pay in the face of soaring inflation.

Up to 100,000 members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will hold a one-day stoppage on Thursday

Britain's economy remains on course for a long-lasting recession on fallout from the highest inflation in decades, analysts said on Monday, even if official data showed growth in October.

A long-time ally of President Vladimir Putin, Alexei Kudrin, said Monday he will be joining Yandex as the Kremlin seeks to tighten its grip on Russia's top technology giant.

Numerous other public and private sector staff, from lawyers to airport ground personnel, have also held strikes this year

She will travel to China next week for high-level meetings with senior Chinese officials as the International Monetary Fund continues to press for quicker progress on debt restructurings for countries in need.

The dollar eased from a one-week high on Wednesday ahead of a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, while optimism over a possible loosening in China's COVID restrictions set it on course for its biggest monthly loss since late 2010.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma has been living in Tokyo for almost six months after disappearing from public view following China's crackdown on the tech sector, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing multiple unnamed sources.

Numerous other public and private sector staff, from lawyers to airport ground personnel, have also held strikes this year.