| Good morning. The pandemic is far from over, oil prices climb, U.K. tax hikes draw criticism and the German election frontrunner maintains his lead. Here's what's moving markets. The coronavirus pandemic, an overarching theme for markets since early last year, is not over yet, experts warn. Nearly all will be either infected or vaccinated by the time the pandemic ends, with scientists warning of more outbreaks that will close schools and overwhelm hospitals as some economies push ahead with reopenings. We can expect more outbreaks in classrooms, on public transport and in workplaces over the coming months with the vaccination rollout racing against new variants. Meanwhile, the U.K. is preparing a mass booster vaccination program as it plans to scrap mandatory vaccine certificates in England. And Israel is even eyeing a fourth dose. A slow rebound of supplies in the Gulf of Mexico after Hurricane Ida is helping push oil prices up to around $70. The move defies OPEC plans to restore output and a Chinese release of reserves, and could be a sign of things to come as Goldman Sachs sees a significant rally for crude in the autumn. Meanwhile, energy prices in France and Germany are rising to record levels as the continent enters the winter heating period. The U.K.'s biggest business lobby warns that higher taxes to fix public finances after the pandemic risk derailing economic growth. Comments by the Confederation of British Industry director general in a speech due Monday reflect growing unease about the government's approach toward business. Britain is also facing persistent gaps in the supply of popular food and drink items that could become permanent due to a worker shortfall. Germans are hitting the polls this month to determine Angela Merkel's successor and center-left frontrunner Olaf Scholz is seemingly consolidating his lead. Viewers deemed Scholz as the winner of the second of three televised debates on Sunday night, fending off attacks on scandals like the Wirecard collapse. An ongoing investigation is looking into whether officials at the Financial Intelligence Unit -- part of the finance ministry under Scholz -- failed to act on money-laundering warnings. Stocks in Europe look set to open a shade lower, after Asian equities fell on renewed concerns over the pandemic as well as China's regulatory crackdown. It's a quiet week for earnings, with Abcam, Helvetia and ITM Power reporting in Europe, along with a sales update from AB Foods. In the U.S., Oracle is the only major report. OPEC releases its Monthly Oil Market Report. SkyBridge Capital, the investment firm founded by Anthony Scaramucci, holds its annual SALT Conference in New York from today. Speakers at the in-person event include Steve Cohen and Cathie Wood. This is what's caught our eye over the past 24 hours. Investors have pulled the plug on bullish pound bets. Net leveraged futures and options positions on the British currency flipped short for the first time since December, according to the latest data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The pound is the best performing Group-of-10 currency year to date -- up over a percent against the dollar -- so some degree of caution isn't surprising. Sterling traders are now weighing a weakening U.K. economy against signs of renewed hawkishness from the Bank of England. Aside from the recent disappointing GDP figures, the end of several government support programs this month -- put in place to help people through the crisis -- could also weigh on sentiment. And the announcement of higher payroll taxes to help fund the NHS won't help dispel the suspicion that there are downside risks to the U.K. economic outlook.  Cormac Mullen is a cross-asset reporter and editor for Bloomberg News in Tokyo. Like Bloomberg's Five Things? Subscribe for unlimited access to trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and gain expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close. | 
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