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 Britain's cabinet met on Monday as pressure grows to slow the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant, a day after the Netherlands imposed a fourth lockdown and as other European countries consider putting a squeeze on Christmas.

Omicron infections are multiplying rapidly across Europe and the United States, doubling every two or three days in London and elsewhere and taking a heavy toll on financial markets, which fear the impact on the global economic recovery.

The variant was first detected last month in southern Africa and Hong Kong and so far been reported in at least 89 countries. The severity of illness it causes remains unclear.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced a shutdown on Saturday, ordering the closure of all but essential stores, as well as restaurants, hairdressers, gyms, museums and other public places from Sunday until at least Jan. 14. read more

Britain has reported record levels of COVID-19 cases in recent days.

"At this point we are still monitoring the data and keeping a very close eye on it," a spokesperson for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said when asked about the possibility of further restrictions. "We will update the public if there are any further measures required, at the earliest possible opportunity."

The Sun newspaper said no announcement was expected on Monday. read more

Any decision to limit how people can celebrate Christmas would come at a high political cost for Johnson, whose authority has been undermined by questions over whether he and his staff broke lockdown rules last year. read more

Germany plans to limit private gatherings from Dec. 28 to a maximum of 10 people who have been vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19, according to a draft of proposed measures seen by Reuters on Monday.

The document also said that access to restaurants would remain limited to people who could provide proof of vaccination or recovery. read more

Ireland on Friday ordered bars and restaurants to close at 8 p.m. and reduced the capacity in all public events. Italy is also considering new measures, newspapers reported on Sunday.

FOOTFALL AND CONSUMPTION

Wall Street's main indexes opened lower on Monday, dragged down by concerns about the impact of tighter COVID-19 curbs on the global economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) fell 143.32 points, or 0.41%, at the open to 35,222.12.

European stocks (.STOXX) were down 1.33% at 11440 GMT. Shopper numbers across Britain's high streets fell 2.6% over the Dec. 18-19 weekend versus the previous weekend, researcher Springboard said. read more

Last week, the European Central Bank cut its euro zone growth forecast for next year to 4.2% from 4.6% previously, citing the pandemic among "headwinds".

ECB President Christine Lagarde said that, even if economies were learning to adapt to living with COVID-19, tighter restrictions could delay the recovery.

Gilles Moec, Axa Group chief economist, said in a note on Monday that a "mediocre" first quarter of the year was now possible across Europe and the United States.

"Even beyond the government measures, which are increasingly severe and are already affecting the travel industry in many European countries, businesses are often 'taking things into their own hands' and reverting to working from home including in U.S. cities which have not mandated this (e.g. in New York City). Less footfall will probably affect consumption."

Israel added the United States to its "no-fly" list, citing concerns over the Omicron variant. U.S. infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said Omicron was "raging through the world" as he urged Americans to get booster shots.

Since the start of the month, U.S. COVID cases have risen 50%, according to a Reuters tally.

New York state recorded its third straight day of record cases with more than half in New York city, where Mayor Bill de Blasio called for the country to "go on a war footing" to fight Omicron with vaccinations.

Booster shots, on top of two-shot vaccinations, appear key to fighting the variant. Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) said on Monday a booster dose of its vaccine seemed to be protective against Omicron in laboratory testing, and that the current version of the shot would remain Moderna’s "first line of defence". read more

Australia for its part is pushing to ease curbs despite a predicted surge in infections, hoping inoculations will help keep people out of hospital. read more

More than 274 million people have been reported to be infected by the coronavirus globally since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019. More than 5.65 million people have died.

The World Economic Forum on Monday postponed its annual meeting in Davos due to the spread of Omicron, putting off the event scheduled for January until mid-2022. read more

Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus: open https://tmsnrt.rs/2FThSv7 in an external browser.

Eikon users can click https://apac1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/cms/?navid=1063154666 for a case tracker. (Reuters)