In 2022, let’s be more positive and less negative

December 30, 2021 | 9:27 pm

I LOATHE my readers. They willfully misunderstand my columns and send me abusive and threatening e-mails. The other day I tried to forward one to my boss, but Bloomberg’s algorithm blocked the message because it contained such vile expletives.

Actually, wait. I thought I hated my readers. Then I took the trouble to browse through this year’s reader e-mails again, and I made a surprising discovery. Yes, I saw all those memorable rants and insults again. But to hop from one to the next, I had to scroll through many notes of praise, encouragement and appreciation. Some readers offered nuanced arguments and insightful facts. I love my readers.

The reason that my initial and instinctive view of, well, all of you was so skewed is that I have a human brain. Cognitively, we’ve evolved to have what’s called a negativity bias. Our ancestors in the savannas had a better chance of surviving and, therefore, of passing on their genes, if they paid disproportionate attention to anything actually or even just potentially bad.

The result is that our brains don’t average, add up or net off positive and negative stimuli but consistently favor the bad and suppress the good. So the whole is more negative than the sum of its parts. That’s why I vividly remembered your jeremiads but was foggy on your paeans. It’s also why you can get a glowing performance review but later feel like a failure — because you’re obsessing over that one footnote in “areas for improvement.” It’s why past traumas still haunt you, but joyous memories are often elusive.

The negativity bias explains why spouses and others in intimate relationships tend to forget the thousands of lovable qualities in each other and — when facing those dirty dishes, say — focus exclusively on the few bugbears. It’s why you can spend a whole week having polite interactions with strangers but on Friday night remember only that one driver with road rage, and tell your family that you had a terrible day. Overall, we lose a lot of harmony, happiness and health because our cognitive system is rigged.

Now the real bummer: The early hominids whose genes we’re carrying were, in at least one respect, blessed. They didn’t have Fox News and shock jocks who intentionally accentuate the negative. They weren’t yet hooked on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. They didn’t have trolls, revenge porn, doxxing and the rest. We do. Thanks to our stunning cognitive abilities, we keep inventing technologies to make our rigged system even more efficient at being negative.

That’s why I quit using Facebook years ago. And I never joined Instagram. I’m still on Twitter — I’m told it goes with the job description of a columnist — but I try to minimize my time there. Whenever I exceed my ration, I find myself pulled into its vortex of negativity. Sometimes I unwittingly carry the bad vibes into my real relationships. Not good.

You can think of negativity bias, especially in the currency of social media, as the psychological equivalent of Gresham’s Law in economics. That’s the one explaining why “bad money drives out good.” It was coined, as it were, by Sir Thomas Gresham — financial adviser to Queen Elizabeth I in the 16^th century — when he noticed that people hoarded the shillings that contained only silver and spent the ones debased with inferior metals. The coins in circulation soon consisted almost entirely of the bad stuff. Does that remind you of our public discourse today?

The bad news is that we can’t outrun evolution; and technology won’t go away. The good news is that we have the option of awareness. The first step is to simply notice our negativity bias, then label and interrogate it — as I did when I inspected my e-mail folder. A lot of dark thoughts drain away just while you’re doing that. Observing that mental chatter and letting it evaporate is what Buddhists call mindfulness.

We can go further. Why not, for example, schedule five minutes a day, or an hour a week, to pause and consciously evoke a good memory from the past, or a lovable quality in the people around us, or an eloquent passage in a column (starting with mine, of course). Remember that the brain processes negative stimuli more readily than positive. So if we want to adjust the asymmetry at least partially, we have to intentionally dwell on the positive sometimes.

Naive? Futile? Maybe. In that case, we can always give up and go back to Twitter to trade our barbs and taunts, then flip off the driver straddling lanes before settling on the couch to yell at the TV screen. That worked so well in 2021, didn’t it?

Or you could join me this January as I try to manage my cognitive negativity bias with some unaccustomed positivity. The goal is to keep it up for all of 2022. But I’m happy to compare notes in February — on Twitter, perhaps.

BLOOMBERG OPINION

Nations try to contain Omicron while keeping economies open

December 30, 2021 | 9:21 pm

White House-face-mask — VISITORS take photos outside the White House in Washington, US, Dec. 27. — REUTERS

ROME/WASHINGTON — Global COVID-19 infections hit a record high over the past seven-day period, Reuters data showed on Wednesday, as the Omicron variant raced out of control and governments tried to contain its spread without paralyzing fragile economies.

Almost 900,000 cases were detected on average each day worldwide between Dec. 22 and 28. A number of countries posted all-time highs during the previous 24 hours, including Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, the United States and many nations in Europe.

Studies have suggested Omicron is less deadly than some previous variants. But the sheer number of people testing positive could overwhelm hospitals in some countries and leave e businesses struggling to carry on without workers who government officials have ordered to quarantine.

Researchers in South Africa found that a key part of the immune system’s second-line defense — its T cells — are highly effective at recognizing and attacking the Omicron variant, preventing most infections from progressing to critical illness.

Political leaders in some nations, fearful of the economic impact of keeping so many workers at home, were considering shortening the period required for isolation after a positive COVID test or exposure.

Spain said on Wednesday it was reducing the quarantine period to seven days from 10, while Italy said it was planning to relax isolation rules for those who came into close contact with sufferers of the virus.

Earlier this week US health authorities released new guidance shortening the isolation period for people with a confirmed infection to five days from 10, as long as they are asymptomatic.

“I am highly concerned that Omicron, being highly transmissible and spreading at the same time as Delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news briefing.

French Health Minister Olivier Veran told lawmakers France was seeing a “dizzying” rise in cases, with 208,000 reported in the space of 24 hours — a national and European record.

Britain, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus and Malta all registered record numbers of new cases on Tuesday, while the seven-day average number of new daily cases in the United States hit a record 258,312, according to a Reuters tally on Wednesday. The previous peak was 250,141, registered last January.

Despite the surge in coronavirus infections, deaths and hospitalizations are comparatively low, Rochelle Walensky, the director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said on Wednesday.

While the current seven-day daily average of cases is about 240,400, up 60% over the previous week, the hospitalization rate for the same period is up just 14% to about 9,000 per day over the same period. Deaths were down about 7% to 1,100 per day, Ms. Walensky added.

Some experts questioned the new CDC rules that halve the isolation period for asymptomatic coronavirus infections, saying more infections could result. The new directive does not require testing to confirm that a person is no longer infectious before they go back to work or socialize.

“They were trying to strike a balance: How do we do good public health principles at the time we don’t have to get to the point where you’re forced to essentially shut the country down,” Anthony Fauci, the US government’s top infectious disease official, told MSNBC in explaining the CDC’s new guidance.

Britain reported 183,037 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, a new record and over 50,000 more than the previous high registered just a day earlier, government statistics showed. Ireland, too, reported record cases on Wednesday, with more than 16,000 new infections.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he will not issue new restrictions this year to limit the spread of Omicron, which now accounts for roughly 90% of all community infections, according to health officials.

Australia registered almost 18,300 new cases, eclipsing Tuesday’s previous pandemic high of around 11,300.

In Spain, demand for free testing kits from the Madrid regional government far outstripped supply, with long queues forming outside pharmacies.

Governments are increasingly worried by the economic impact of huge numbers of people being forced into isolation because they had been in contact with a coronavirus sufferer.

“We just can’t have everybody just being taken out of circulation because they just happen to be at a particular place at a particular time,” Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters.

Mr. Morrison wants to make urgent changes to COVID-19 testing rules to ease pressure on testing sites. He said Australia needed “a gear change” to manage overburdened laboratories and get people out of isolation.

While Spain and Italy moved to relax some isolation rules, China stuck to its policy of zero tolerance, keeping 13 million people in Xian, capital of central Shaanxi province, under rigid lockdown for a seventh day as 151 new cases were reported on Tuesday, albeit none with Omicron so far.

“I just want to go home,” said a 32-year-old mechanic who was in the city on business last week when it was effectively shut off from the outside world. — Reuters

Omicron yet to curb driving across most of Asia in boon for oil

December 30, 2021 | 9:21 pm

traffic-vehicles — PHILIPPINE STAR/ MICHAEL VARCAS

THE RAPID spread of Omicron has yet to dampen road traffic across most of Asia even as it leads to restrictions in parts of Europe, suggesting energy demand in the region may be spared a significant hit.

More cars have thronged the main roads in December amid yearend festivities than seen last month. All but one major Asian country registered a rise in mobility on-month, according to data compiled by Bloomberg using Apple, Inc. mobility statistics until Dec. 27.

The broadly positive picture from Asia — at least so far — may help to support gasoline demand and refining margins, which in turn could aid physical crude consumption and oil futures into 2022. Global benchmark Brent advanced by more than 3% in the week leading up to Christmas, and has extended gains since then, briefly retopping the $80-a-barrel level on Wednesday.

Still, the region’s biggest oil guzzler, China, has shown signs of weakening fuel demand. While Apple doesn’t provide data on China, other local providers like Baidu, Inc. showed that road congestion has eased in Shanghai, while it was up a little in Beijing. Xi-an, a city of more than 10 million people that’s under lockdown after a surge in virus cases, saw congestion drop by a fifth on Wednesday from a week earlier, according to data from Baidu’s map service.

China’s relentless zero-COVID approach continues to undermine travel plans, while an increasingly tough line against pollution is further impeding demand. Consumption of transport fuels may face headwinds heading into the new year. On Wednesday, Chinese officials renewed their commitment to a zero-tolerance approach against the disease as they battle the biggest and most protracted outbreak since the virus emerged.

In India, demand may remain more resilient as the federal government has avoided fresh nation-wide restrictions even as some states announced night curfews and other curbs. Driving activity in December has been significantly higher, with crowds thronging malls and markets. Diesel sales in the first half of this month were up 18% on-month, while gasoline usage rose about 7%.

Traffic has surged in Australia too, with driving activity 12 percentage points higher through Dec. 27 than in November. Still, a surge in cases clouds the outlook as it may test the government’s resolve to continue reopening. New South Wales recorded 11,201 new cases on Wednesday, almost double over the previous day’s figure, and hospitalizations hit the highest since mid-October.

While road fuels such as diesel and gasoline may be holding up against the rise in Omicron so far, jet fuel demand may not be so resilient as borders close again. Asian aviation hub Singapore froze ticket sales for flights under its vaccinated travel lane program, while Indonesia may ban overseas travel. Meanwhile, China’s new aircraft-cleaning rules may trigger cancellations. Hong Kong landed another blow to regional travel as it axed quarantine exemptions for all crew working on non-mainland China passenger flights. — Bloomberg

Mercedes swept up in China internet furor over models’ eyes

December 30, 2021 | 9:20 pm

THE Mercedes-Benz logo is seen at the Odeonsplatz, Munich, Germany, Sept. 6, 2021. — REUTERS/WOLFGANG RATTAY

MERCEDES-BENZ removed a video advertisement from a Chinese social media website, state media said, after the clip got swept up in a charged national debate over depictions of Asian-looking features by foreign companies.

The video was posted on Mercedes-Benz’s official Weibo account on Saturday and later removed due to public backlash, the Communist Party’s Global Times newspaper said. “The makeup of the female model looked like slanted eyes and once again aroused a heated discussion from netizens with many blaming that the makeup reflects Western stereotypes about Asian people,” the paper said Tuesday.

The report included a screenshot of the video showing a woman who is apparently Chinese, though Bloomberg News hasn’t seen the full version of the ad. Emails and phone calls to Martin Sauber and Juan Zhou, the China press representatives for Daimler AG, were not returned as of Thursday morning.

The episode makes Mercedes-Benz the latest target of consumer nationalism in China that has in the past dealt a blow to Dolce & Gabbana, Hennes & Mauritz and others. Last week, Chinese social-media platforms erupted over allegations that Walmart, Inc. had stopped selling items from Xinjiang at its Sam’s Club grocery stores in the Asian nation. Christian Dior SE ceased using a photo of a model in November that state media said was “smearing Asian women.”

Chinese internet users have recently been debating the way that models’ eyes are shown in advertising. The Chinese company Three Squirrels, Inc. recently apologized for ads featuring model Cai Niang Niang wearing makeup that accentuated the slant of her eyes, the South China Morning Post reported.

The model hit back on the Twitter-like Weibo service, saying: “With small eyes, am I not Chinese? I totally agree with patriotism. However, creating big problems out of normal matters has become a morbid obsession.”

The Global Times, a nationalistic tabloid, took aim at the Gucci fashion brand in an article late Wednesday about the appearance of a female model in an advertisement for a handbag.

“Gucci was found to feature an Asian-looking model with small eyes, ‘unconventional’ makeup, an exaggerated nose ring and a leather whip in her hand,” it said.

The article pointed out that while the model could be seen in a photo on Gucci’s official Twitter account, only her hand holding the item could be seen on the company’s Weibo. Twitter is among the foreign social media services that are blocked by the ruling Communist Party’s censors.

Representatives for Kering SA, owner of the Gucci brand, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In 2018, Mercedes-Benz apologized for quoting the Dalai Lama on Instagram, a move that the Global Times also criticized. The automaker had attached a quote from the Tibetan spiritual leader to a post showcasing a sleek luxury model — “Look at situations from all angles, and you will become more open.”

Daimler said last week it would slash its stake in the Denza electric-car joint venture with China’s BYD Auto Industry Co. following years of weak sales. BYD will own 90% of the business and Daimler 10% after an equity transfer the companies plan to complete in mid-2022, the Mercedes-Benz maker said. — Bloomberg

Cathay plans to cancel flights as quarantine rules hit airline crew

December 30, 2021 | 9:19 pm

CATHAY Pacific Airways Ltd. will make “significant” changes to its flight schedule as Hong Kong further tightens quarantine restrictions for aircrew, dealing another blow to a carrier already reeling as the city’s borders remain largely closed.

The airline is tentatively planning to cancel some passenger flights to and from the city through the first quarter of 2022, it said in a statement posted to its website, without elaborating. The move will further isolate the once bustling Asian financial hub, which is largely closed off from the world in an effort to eradicate any vestiges of COVID-19.

The notice came after the South China Morning Post (SCMP)reported that airlines in Hong Kong had been informed that crew working on non-China passenger flights had lost all quarantine-related exemptions.

A Cathay Pacific spokesperson told Bloomberg earlier Thursday that in light of the new measures, the airline would consolidate its passenger flight schedule for January and affected customers could opt for full ticket refunds.

“The further tightening of crew quarantine restrictions continues to constrain our ability to operate flights as planned,” the spokesperson said. “We are communicating with affected customers and will endeavor to make alternative flight arrangements for them.”

Hong Kong’s government told airlines of the latest changes to its rules earlier Wednesday before the measures went into effect at midnight, the SCMP reported, citing unidentified sources. The move comes after authorities on Tuesday mandated three-day hotel quarantines for air-cargo crew.

Other changes include necessitating that non-mainland China flights to and from Hong Kong be operated by so-called “closed-loop” aircrew, who will be required to spend as many as two weeks in quarantine every time they land in the city, the SCMP said.

A Hong Kong government spokesperson didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment Thursday.

TIGHT BORDER
The Asian financial hub is imposing increasingly stringent border control measures as the highly transmissible Omicron variant spurs record case counts globally. Hong Kong has some of the world’s strictest quarantine requirements and has seen no local transmission of the virus since June, but concerns are mounting that it will be left behind as other major cities shift toward living with Covid as endemic.

Hong Kong found suspected Omicron cases in two Cathay Pacific aircrew members this week. They are suspected to have broken the airline’s isolation guidance and been on multiple outings during their first three days after returning to Hong Kong from the US, exposing the city to infection.

Cathay Pacific is already at risk of widespread flight cancellations in coming days as it has been unable to secure enough quarantine hotel rooms for crew to meet the new rules, the newspaper said. The airline operates many of its long-haul flights under a closed loop to avoid staff interacting with the local community. The strategy will now be extended to flights across Asia and increase stress on operations, according to the SCMP report.

Hong Kong has announced that it will shut down flight routes for two weeks if multiple cases are found on any one route. It has banned Cathay Pacific flights from Toronto and Los Angeles from Dec. 29 to Jan. 11, adding to a list of suspended routes ranging from London and Seoul to Dubai and Bangkok. — Bloomberg

China Evergrande shares fall after missing new coupon payments

December 30, 2021 | 9:19 pm

HONG KONG — Shares of China Evergrande Group tumbled on Thursday after the embattled real estate developer did not pay offshore coupons due earlier this week.

Evergrande, whose $19 billion in international bonds are in cross-default after missing a deadline to pay coupons earlier this month, had new coupon payments worth $255 million due on Tuesday for its June 2023 and 2025 notes.

Some bondholders holding the two bonds have not yet received the coupons, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter. Both the payments have a 30-day grace period.

Evergrande’s shares were down 9.7% at HK$1.49 at 0307 GMT, while the Hang Seng index was up 0.5%.

Bloomberg News reported earlier that the due date passed with no sign of payment by the property developer.

Evergrande’s Thursday decline wiped out gains from earlier this week, when the market cheered the initial progress made by the firm in resuming construction work.

Company Chairman Hui Ka Yan vowed in a meeting on Sunday to deliver 39,000 units of properties in December, compared with fewer than 10,000 in each of the previous three months.

“(The non-payments) show Evergrande is still not doing okay even though it is delivering homes,” said Thomas Kwok, head of equity business of CHIEF Securities in Hong Kong.

The market confidence in Evergrande and the China property sector is weak, as there could be more defaults with many bonds due in January, Mr. Kwok added.

Evergrande has more than $300 billion in liabilities and is scrambling to raise cash by selling assets and shares to repay suppliers and creditors. — Reuters

Donald Trump, PGA reach settlement over golf club snub that followed US Capitol siege

December 30, 2021 | 9:13 pm

President_Trump_and_Brett_Favre_(50159265167) — FORMER PRESIDENT Donald J. Trump poses for a photo with football legend Brett Favre at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster on Saturday, July 25, 2020, in Bedminster, NJ.

FORMER US President Donald J. Trump has resolved a dispute with the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) of America over the golf association’s decision earlier this year to pull a major professional tournament from a Trump-owned golf course, the PGA of America said.

In a press release, the PGA said it had reached a confidential settlement with the Trump Organization that resolves legal claims stemming from its decision in the wake of the storming of the US Capitol to shun Trump’s golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey.

“While the terms of the settlement will remain confidential, representatives from both the PGA and the Trump Organization expressed satisfaction with the agreement,” the press release stated.

The PGA of America said on Jan. 10 it was stripping Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, of the 2022 PGA Championship, one of four prestigious majors on the annual golf calendar, following a vote by its board of directors.

“It has become clear that conducting the PGA Championship at Trump Bedminster would be detrimental to the PGA of America brand,” PGA of America President Jim Richerson said in a video announcing the decision.

More than 100 police officers were injured during the multi-hour onslaught by Trump supporters, and four officers have since taken their own lives.

A Capitol Police officer, Brian Sicknick, suffered strokes and died of natural causes one day after responding to the attack, the District of Columbia’s chief medical examiner determined in April.

More than 700 people have been arrested in connection with the assault on the Capitol.

The PGA press release did not say whether Trump golf courses will host future PGA tournaments.

“We look forward to continuing to support the mission of the PGA and its Professionals, who are the best in the golf industry,” Eric Trump, a son of the former president and a Trump Organization executive, said in a statement included as part of the press release. — Reuters

Ja Morant leads Grizzlies’ comeback win over Lakers

December 30, 2021 | 9:12 pm

Ja-Morant-grizzlies-fb — MEMPHIS Grizzlies guard Ja Morant — MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES FB PAGE

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JA MORANT made a career-high six 3-pointers and scored a season-high 41 points as the Memphis Grizzlies rallied for their third straight win, beating the visiting Los Angeles Lakers (104-99) on Wednesday.

Desmond Bane scored 20 points and Jaren Jackson, Jr. had 15 for Memphis, which trailed for nearly all of the first three quarters before outscoring the Lakers (26-16) in the final period.

LeBron James tied his career high with eight 3-pointers and finished with 37 points, 13 rebounds, and seven assists for the Lakers. Russell Westbrook recorded his eighth triple-double of the season with 16 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists.

Malik Monk added 15 points for Los Angeles, which has lost six of its last seven games. James, who turns 37 on Thursday, has scored at least 30 points in six straight games.

Memphis trailed by as many as 14 in the second half but cut the deficit to five entering the fourth quarter. Morant made a 3-pointer to cap a 12-0 run and give the Grizzlies a 99-92 lead with 4:28 remaining.

The Lakers pulled within 100-97 on James’ trey with 2:48 to play. Los Angeles trailed 102-99 with 6.7 seconds left before James committed a turnover and Bane made two foul shots to seal the comeback victory.

Morant shot 13 of 27 from the field and 6 of 7 from beyond the arc for Memphis, which has won 13 of its past 17 games. He also grabbed 10 rebounds.

The Grizzlies trailed by 13 late in the first half before Morant scored seven straight points to pull Memphis within 54-48 at the break.

James had 15 points and eight rebounds in the first half for the Lakers, who limited the Grizzlies to 35.4% shooting over the first 24 minutes, including 2 of 14 (14.3%) from 3-point range.

Monk scored with 4:33 left in the third quarter to extend the Lakers’ lead to 80-66 before the Grizzlies closed the period with a 12-3 run to cut the deficit to 83-78. Morant capped the rally with a 3-pointer, giving him 14 points for the quarter.

Memphis played without Dillon Brooks, John Konchar, Jarrett Culver and De’Anthony Melton, who are all in the league’s health and safety protocol. Los Angeles was missing four players due to COVID protocol or a lack of conditioning upon being reinstated from COVID-related absences.

JAZZ EXTEND WIN STREAK
Rudy Gobert scored 22 points and grabbed 14 rebounds and Rudy Gay netted 21 points to lead the visiting Utah Jazz to a 120-105 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night.

Six Jazz players scored 15 or more points and the team shot 52.9% from the field to win its fifth straight game overall and run its record to 7-0 on the road.

Damian Lillard and Norman Powell each fired in 32 points for Portland, but Larry Nance, Jr. (14 points) was the only other Blazer to reach double figures for the short-handed squad that has dropped three games in a row.

The Blazers, who never led and trailed by as many as 22 points, were without two coaches, including Portland head coach Chauncey Billups, and seven players who are all caught up in the NBA’s health and safety protocols.

Utah’s bench came up big on a night the team’s leading scorer, Donovan Mitchell, was sidelined with a back injury.

Along with Gay, who hit eight of 13 shots and grabbed six rebounds, Jordan Clarkson totaled 19 points, five assists and four rebounds, and former Blazer big Hassan Whiteside collected a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds.

In all, the Jazz bench outscored the Blazers’ backups 59-22.

Gobert put the first points on the scoreboard with a dunk, foreshadowing a dominating night inside for the Jazz. Utah outscored Portland (74-30) in the paint.

Bojan Bogdanović got off to a hot start, quickly scoring eight of his 15 points to boost the Jazz to a 16-3 lead almost six minutes into the game. Lillard helped Portland surge to within five, 25-20, with a 3-pointer, but Gobert and Clarkson finished the quarter with consecutive dunks for a 36-27 lead.

Despite 13 points in the second quarter by Powell, the Jazz built their lead up to 16 before settling for a 10-point advantage at the break.

Gobert dominated the interior to open the fourth, scoring six straight Jazz points to give Utah a 107-87 lead with 7:26 remaining.

Utah improved to 5-0 vs. Northwest Division opponents and 15-3 in Western Conference action.

BULLS COMPLETE HOME-AND-HOME SWEEP
Zach LaVine scored 25 points and Nikola Vučević and Coby White registered double-doubles as the host Chicago Bulls stretched their winning streak to five games with a 131-117 victory against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night.

A 12-point winner at Atlanta on Monday, the Bulls swept the home-and-home series while sending the short-handed Hawks to their third straight defeat and fifth loss in six games.

Vučević contributed 16 points and 20 rebounds for his third straight double-double and fourth in five games. White added 17 points and 12 of Chicago’s season-best 38 assists.

DeMar DeRozan (20 points), Ayo Dosunmu (14), Javonte Green (14), and Tyler Cook (10) also finished in double figures for the Bulls, who led by as many as 27 points. DeRozan added eight assists.

Trae Young scored a game-high 26 points to go with 11 assists for Atlanta in the opener of a six-game road trip. Beset by numerous absences due to the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) health and safety protocols for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Hawks fielded a roster that included just four regular rotation players and had numerous additions who signed 10-day hardship contracts.

Atlanta’s Clint Capela had 18 points and 15 rebounds. Chaundee Brown, Jr. (16 points), Cam Reddish (14), Malcolm Hill (13), and Cameron Oliver (13) were next. The Hawks hit 47.8% of their field-goal attempts but allowed the Bulls to make 61.9% from the floor.

A torrid, 69.8% effort from the field boosted the Bulls to a 74-53 lead at half time. Chicago had 24 assists on 30 made field goals in the opening 24 minutes while boasting four players in double figures, led by LaVine with 15.

Chicago pulled away behind a 22-3 run to close the half. After the Hawks drew to within 52-50 on a Brown, Jr. layup with 6:04 left in the second quarter, Atlanta tallied a mere three free throws before intermission.

The Bulls will try to claim the season series from the Hawks when the teams meet on Jan. 24 in Atlanta. The Bulls and Hawks are set to close the series Feb. 24 in Chicago. — Reuters

Not giving up

December 30, 2021 | 9:11 pm

The joy that the Lakers experienced in the aftermath of their triumph over the Rockets the other day was quickly replaced by the disappointment of defeat against the Grizzlies yesterday. It didn’t matter that they trekked to the FedExForum on the second night of a back-to-back set, or that they remained incomplete in the face of injuries and virus protocols. As far as they were concerned, they managed to drop yet another winnable match, with their sixth defeat in seven outings underscoring the unevenness of their roster.

That the Lakers’ travails have coincided with top dog LeBron James’ most productive stretch of hoops in a long, long while serves only to highlight their confounding situation. There was once a time when an outstanding performance from the four-time Most Valuable Player awardee automatically translated to a win. Not anymore; if anything, his singular exploits all the more indicate his relative lack of support. For all the pluses his advanced metrics show, his inability to convert these to positive vibes speaks volumes about his dwindling influence over match outcomes.

It’s not James’ fault, to be sure. And if there’s any silver lining to the Lakers’ swoon, it’s that he seems to have found a place in the lineup where he can be extremely effective in the short and medium terms. Certainly, playing at the five spot in this day and age of pace and space puts the spotlight on his strengths even as Father Time slowly catches up to him. Heck, it even figures to lengthen his career; with the likes of Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokić now clearly the exception than the rule, he can hold his own against opposing centers on defense while running rings around them at the other end of the court.

That said, the Lakers — and James himself — have never been about small victories and simple pleasures. Given their pedigree, it’s invariably the Larry O’Brien Trophy or bust for them. And with the 17-time All-Star, in his own words, “on the other side of the hill,” he knows his chances of adding to his tally of titles are fading fast. So, yes, he’ll keep plodding on. And, yes, he’ll put mind and muscle to work to try and find a solution. He’s not the greatest problem solver in modern hoops for nothing, and the last thing he will be doing is giving up.

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

World nations try to balance Omicron restrictions while keeping economies open

December 30, 2021 | 3:22 pm

Omicron-laboratory — Image via Flickr/US Navy

ROME/WASHINGTON — Global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infections hit a record high over the past seven-day period, Reuters data showed on Wednesday, as the Omicron variant raced out of control and governments tried to contain its spread without paralyzing fragile economies.

Almost 900,000 cases were detected on average each day worldwide between Dec. 22 and 28. A number of countries posted all-time highs during the previous 24 hours, including Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, the United States and many nations in Europe.

Studies have suggested Omicron is less deadly than some previous variants. But the sheer number of people testing positive could overwhelm hospitals in some countries and leave businesses struggling to carry on without workers who government officials have ordered to quarantine.

Researchers in South Africa found that a key part of the immune system’s second-line defense — its T cells — are highly effective at recognizing and attacking the Omicron variant, preventing most infections from progressing to critical illness.

Political leaders in some nations, fearful of the economic impact of keeping so many workers at home, were considering shortening the period required for isolation after a positive COVID test or exposure.

Spain said on Wednesday it was reducing the quarantine period to seven days from 10, while Italy said it was planning to relax isolation rules for those who came into close contact with sufferers of the virus.

Earlier this week US health authorities released new guidance shortening the isolation period for people with a confirmed infection to five days from 10, so long as they are asymptomatic.

“I am highly concerned that Omicron, being highly transmissible and spreading at the same time as Delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news briefing.

French Health Minister Olivier Veran told lawmakers France was seeing a “dizzying” rise in cases, with 208,000 reported in the space of 24 hours — a national and European record.

Britain, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus and Malta all registered record numbers of new cases on Tuesday, while the seven-day average number of new daily cases in the United States hit a record 258,312, according to a Reuters tally on Wednesday. The previous peak was 250,141, registered last January.

Despite the surge in coronavirus infections, deaths and hospitalizations are comparatively low, Rochelle Walensky, the director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Wednesday.