The FTSE 100 and CAC both rose 0.2% after opening, while the DAX was treading water. 

Amid rising Omicron cases, UK prime minister Boris Johnson said in an announcement last night that face masks would become a legal requirement in most public indoor areas and that people should work from home wherever possible. From next week, vaccine passports will also be required to attend large and potentially crowded venues such as nightclubs. 

The news hit leisure stocks, including bars, restaurants, and hotels, particularly hard. 

Ruby McGregor-Smith, president of the British Chambers of Commerce, said, “We have been calling on the UK government for several months to set out what contingency plans for business would look like if further restrictions were needed this winter.”

“Yet again, firms are now being asked to make changes at the very last minute. Restrictions will also impact on consumer behaviour with knock-on effects which could risk the fragile recovery, order books and revenues.”