FACTBOX-Latest on worldwide spread of the coronavirus

* Russia plans to apply to the European Union next month for approval of its Sputnik V vaccine. * Britain will ban arrivals from South American countries and Portugal because of concerns over a new Brazilian variant of the coronavirus.


Reuters | Updated: 15-01-2021 01:58 IST | Created: 15-01-2021 01:53 IST
FACTBOX-Latest on worldwide spread of the coronavirus
Representative image Image Credit: ANI

China is stealing a march on Western drugmakers in the COVID-19 vaccine race in developing nations, with Indonesia and Turkey rolling out huge campaigns with a Chinese shot this week, Brazil due to follow soon, and even EU member Hungary signing up. DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

* Eikon users, see COVID-19: MacroVitals https://apac1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/cms/?navid=1592404098 for a case tracker and summary of news. EUROPE

* Germany recorded a new record number of daily deaths, prompting calls for an even tighter lockdown after the country emerged relatively unscathed in 2020. * Russia plans to apply to the European Union next month for approval of its Sputnik V vaccine.

* Britain will ban arrivals from South American countries and Portugal because of concerns over a new Brazilian variant of the coronavirus. * France will strengthen border controls and bring forward its night curfew by two hours to 6 p.m. for at least a fortnight.

* Romanian schools will reopen next month after a three-month closure of in-person classes if current infection rates do not worsen significantly. ASIA-PACIFIC

* India will treat a domestic vaccine equally with a prominent global one, even though the homegrown drug's efficacy has not been proven, and people will have no choice which one they get, an official told Reuters. * The Philippines has authorised Pfizer's vaccine, the first to be approved in the country among the most-affected in Asia.

* The once-delayed Tokyo Olympics may not go ahead this summer as planned, a Japanese minister said. AMERICAS

* President-elect Joe Biden will unveil a stimulus package proposal designed to jump-start the economy during the pandemic, with an economic lifeline that could exceed $1.5 trillion and help minority communities. * Brazil aims to begin nationwide vaccinations on Jan. 20.

* Chilean authorities said they remained confident in a vaccine developed by China's Sinovac despite jitters elsewhere after researchers in Brazil acknowledged that its efficacy was lower than initially suggested. MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* Turkey began administering vaccines developed by China's Sinovac to health workers. * The African Union secured 270 million doses for the continent where a second wave is infecting about 30,000 people a day.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS * People who have had COVID-19 are highly likely to have immunity to it for at least five months, but there is evidence that those with antibodies may still be able to carry and spread the virus, a UK study found.

* Germany's Qiagen warned against re-engineering standard tests to monitor for new variants of the coronavirus. ECONOMIC IMPACT

* The number of Americans filing first-time applications for unemployment benefits surged last week, confirming a weakening in labour market conditions. * A group representing major U.S. airports said it expected to see a $40 billion impact over two years from the steep decline in passenger traffic.

* The International Monetary Fund is urging countries to continue strong fiscal and monetary efforts to support their economies. (Compiled by Devika Syamnath and Veronica Snoj; Edited by Andrew Cawthorne and Shounak Dasgupta)

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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