Health Headlines: Bird Flu Sparks Housing Mandate, Philips Profits Soar, and Novo Nordisk's Strategic Moves

The UK has implemented a nationwide mandatory bird housing measure effective Thursday to combat the rapid spread of bird flu. The disease's escalation in Europe has resulted in early outbreaks in numerous countries, sparking fears of repeating past scenarios where millions of birds were culled and food prices surged.

Dutch company Philips exceeded third-quarter profit expectations, reporting 531 million euros in adjusted EBITA. This was attributed to strategic measures against tariffs and the introduction of new AI tools, surpassing analysts' predictions of 484 million euros.

Amid fierce competition in the obesity market, Novo Nordisk assures that its takeover of Metsera won't cause antitrust issues, despite Pfizer's lawsuit alleging anticompetitive tactics. Meanwhile, famine conditions have been confirmed in the Sudanese cities of al-Fashir and Kadugli.