FACTBOX-Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

The British government said that 31.622 million people in the United Kingdom had received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. * Turkey recorded 49,584 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, health ministry data showed, the highest level since the start of the pandemic.

Several countries are scurrying to contain fresh COVID-19 outbreaks, a record 115,736 new cases on Wednesday, while U.S. President Joe Biden moved up the vaccine eligibility target for all American adults to April 19. 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 the news. EUROPE

* The European Union denied blocking shipments of 3.1 million doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine to Australia, as the bloc steps up scrutiny of vaccine exports to address shortages. * Britain has not given up on resuming international travel on May 17, but needs to be cautious given rising infections in Europe, the prime minister said. The British government said that 31.622 million people in the United Kingdom had received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

* Turkey recorded 49,584 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, health ministry data showed, the highest level since the start of the pandemic. AMERICAS

* Biden moved up the COVID-19 vaccine eligibility target but warned that with new virus variants spreading "we're still in a life-and-death race" with the coronavirus. * Brazil's brutal surge in COVID-19 deaths will soon surpass the worst of a record January wave in the United States, scientists forecast.

* Toronto will cancel all in-person learning at elementary and secondary schools as of Wednesday. * The Venezuelan government said it will exempt only small companies created this year from paying taxes, as the pandemic and hyperinflation continue to plague the country.

ASIA-PACIFIC * India's second wave of coronavirus infections continued to swell as it reported a record 115,736 new cases, a 13-fold increase in just over two months.

* Indonesia has reported its first case of a more transmissible new variant of the coronavirus known for reducing vaccine protection, but the government said vaccines being used in the country could withstand the mutation. * New Zealand and Australia will create a "travel bubble" without COVID-19 testing or quarantine from April 19.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA * The Supreme Committee to Combat Coronavirus in Oman said Omani citizens coming to the Sultanate through various land, sea, and airports will be exempt from the mandatory institutional quarantine but still must quarantine at home.

* South Africa signed an agreement with Pfizer for 20 million dual shot vaccine doses, boosting plans to start mass vaccinations from April. MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

* The University of Oxford said it had paused a small UK trial testing the COVID-19 vaccine it developed with AstraZeneca in children and teenagers, as it waits for more data on rare blood clotting issues in adults who received the shot. * South Korea's food and drug safety ministry has granted final approval for the use of Johnson & Johnson's coronavirus vaccine, the News1 agency reported.

* Mexico's health regulator authorized the emergency use of India's COVID-19 vaccine COVAXIN. ECONOMIC IMPACT

* U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said a rapid U.S. economic recovery would boost overall global growth, but more work was needed to shore up weaknesses the global COVID-19 crisis exposed in the non-bank financial sector, supply chains, and social safety nets. * Activity in India's services industry expanded for the sixth consecutive month in March, but some momentum was lost as authorities imposed fresh restrictions, a survey showed.

* The Canadian province of Saskatchewan forecast a C$2.6-billion ($2.07 billion) deficit in the current 2021-22 fiscal year, up from last year's C$1.9 billion, as the pandemic drives up costs. * A surge in new orders spurred the sharpest rate of growth in Irish services activity since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March, a business survey showed.