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A man holds an American flag depicting president-elect Donald Trump at Parliament Square in London.Jeff J Mitchell | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesAs U.K. and EU leaders seek to reset relations ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House, public sentiment also appears to be shifting in favor of closer ties across the continent, according to a new survey.The majority of Britons (55%) think the U.K. should realign with the EU under a second Trump term, and prioritize stronger relations with Brussels over the U.S. (17%), research from the European Council on Foreign Relations showed Thursday. There was also reluctance for Britain to follow Trump's lead on major foreign policy issues such as China and Ukraine.On the continent, the feeling is mutual, with pluralities of ...

People walk inside the Korea Exchange (KRX) building, as stock markets in Asia as a whole have been affected by the intensifying political turmoil over president Yoon Suk Yeol's role in martial law, in Seoul, South Korea, on Dec. 9, 2024.Daniel Ceng | Anadolu | Getty ImagesSouth Korean markets have had a dismal 2024, with the so-called "Korea discount" in its stock markets widening compared to other global peers. The recent political upheaval is expected to entrench this phenomenon.The country's benchmark stock index, Kospi, has lost over 7% this year and the underperformance of the South Korean market signals its "Corporate Value-Up" program, announced in February this year, has failed to address the "Korea discount."The "Korea discount" refers to South Korean securities trading at lower ...

Indian travelers spent $34.2 billion on outbound travel in 2023, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council.But the current level of Indian travel is "minuscule" compared with what's to come, Alan Watts, Hilton's Asia-Pacific president, told "Squawk Box Asia" Monday."The story for India is before us," he said. "India outbound will be the story of the next decade."By 2034, Indian travelers' outbound spend is projected to more than double to $76.8 billion, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council's Economic Impact 2024 report — which would make the country the seventh-largest travel spenders in the world, up from 12th in 2023."When you think of India, it has the characteristics of China, which is the second largest lodging market in the world," said Watts. It has "1.4 bil...

UnitedHealth Group signage is displayed on a monitor on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesShares of major health-care companies fell as much as 5% on Wednesday as investors feared pressure from lawmakers and patients could force changes to their business models.The declining stocks include UnitedHealth Group, Cigna and CVS Health, which operate three of the nation's largest private health insurers and drug supply chain middlemen called pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs. They also own pharmacy businesses. Shares of all three companies closed at least 5% lower.The stock reaction on Wednesday appeared to be in response to new bipartisan legislation that aims to break up PBMs, which was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. PBMs have faced y...

The US Treasury building in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2023.Nathan Howard | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThe U.S. budget deficit swelled in November, putting fiscal 2025 already at a much faster pace than a year ago when the shortfall topped $1.8 trillion, the Treasury Department reported Wednesday.For the month, the deficit totaled $366.8 billion, 17% higher than November 2023 and taking the total for the first two months of the fiscal year more than 64% higher than the same period a year ago on an unadjusted basis.The increase came despite receipts that totaled $301.8 billion, about $27 billion more than last November. Outlays totaled $668.5 billion, or nearly $80 billion more from a year ago.The increase in red ink brought the national debt to $36.1 trillion as the month drew t...

Ireland is to ask the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to broaden its definition of genocide - claiming Israel has engaged in the "collective punishment" of people in Gaza.An intervention will be made later this month, deputy prime minister Micheal Martin said, and will be linked to a case South Africa has brought under the United Nations' Genocide Convention. Mr Martin said the Irish government is "concerned" that a "narrow interpretation of what constitutes genocide" leads to a "culture of impunity in which the protection of civilians is minimised".The Dublin administration's "view of the convention is broader" and "prioritises the protection of civilian life", he added.Mr Martin, who also serves as Ireland's minister for foreign affairs, claimed there had been "collective punishment...