FACTBOX-Latest on worldwide spread of the coronavirus

* The African Union secured 270 million doses for the continent where a second wave is infecting about 30,000 people a day. * Seychelles is struggling to raise funds to pay public workers and the government plans to raise $212 million to plug its budget deficit, the finance minister said.

Russia plans to apply to the European Union next month for approval of its Sputnik V vaccine, while the Serum Institute of India expects emergency authorization for the Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccine to come soon. 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

* Russia could approve non-Russian vaccines, including the shot developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, according to state healthcare regulator Roszdravnadzor. * Germany wants to jump-start gene sequencing efforts to closely track coronavirus mutations and catch up with European nations such as Britain and Denmark which have taken the lead on decoding viral genomes.

* Those included in the second phase of Britain's vaccination programme might include those at risk of higher exposure, such as people working in specific professions, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman said. * Hungary has embarked on the approval process for the Sinopharm vaccine developed by the company's Beijing-based affiliate that was approved in China in December, an official said.

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 they one they get, an official told Reuters.

* The Philippines' Food and Drug Administration has authorised Pfizer's vaccine, the first to be approved in the country among the most-affected in Asia. * Indonesia may allow companies to procure their own vaccines, its health minister said, while a nationwide rollout of an inoculation programme began.

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

* Brazil is to start its vaccine programme on Jan. 21, Senator Nelsinho Trad said. * U.S. Representative Andriano Espaillat said he had tested positive, becoming the fourth member of Congress to announce they had contracted the coronavirus following a mob attack on the U.S. Capitol last week.

* The White House is still considering rescinding entry bans for most non-U.S. citizens who have recently been in Brazil and much of Europe in the final days before President U.S. Donald Trump leaves office, two officials said. MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan will be vaccinated live on television, as the country began administering the vaccine 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.

* Seychelles is struggling to raise funds to pay public workers and the government plans to raise $212 million to plug its budget deficit, the finance minister said. MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

* Russia's Sputnik V vaccine will be registered in nine other countries this month, the head of Russia's sovereign wealth fund said. * 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

ECONOMIC IMPACT * Oil prices dipped on Thursday as bullish signals from Chinese import data and U.S. crude oil stocks draws were outweighed by surging coronavirus cases in Europe and new lockdowns in China.

* Germany's economy shrank by 5% in 2020, less than expected and a smaller contraction than during the global financial crisis, as unprecedented government rescue and stimulus measures helped lessen the shock. (Compiled by Veronica Snoj and Sarah Morland; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)

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