BRITISH business confidence began to feel the impact of the Omicron variant of coronavirus this month, alongside further upward pressure on prices and staffing costs, a survey showed yesterday. Lloyds Bank said its monthly business confidence survey, conducted between Nov. 26 and Dec. 10, held steady at 40 percent this month, well above its long-run average of 28 percent. However, responses weakened in the second week of the survey when the impact of the Omicron variant began to become clearer, with sentiment falling back to 32 percent, similar to during the spring and summer. Last week IHS Markit purchasing managers’ data showed activity growth fell to a 10-month low this month. “Businesses face into a number of headwinds and challenging trading conditions, including higher interest rates, as we move into 2022, but many remain resilient and hopeful that acute downside risks are not realized,” said Hann-Ju Ho, senior economist at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking. The Bank of England raised its main interest rate to 0.25 percent from 0.1 percent last week, despite seeing a short-term hit to growth from Omicron, and its chief economist said further rate rises were likely if price pressures did not ease.(SD-Agencies) | 