FACTBOX-Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

* Johnson also said the government was looking at all possible solutions to tackle a surge in cases of the variant first detected in India. AMERICAS * Advisors to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will meet on Wednesday to discuss recommendations for the use of Pfizer and partner BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine in children aged 12 to 15. * The United States' track and field team has cancelled its pre-Olympics training camp in Japan out of concerns for safety amid the pandemic, local authorities announced.

A new global system should be set up to respond faster to disease outbreaks, which could ensure that no future virus causes a pandemic as devastating as COVID-19, an independent World Health Organization review panel said on Wednesday. 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 * Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced an inquiry next year into the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic that is likely to focus on why the United Kingdom suffered Europe's worst death toll and was so slow initially to impose a lockdown. * Johnson also said the government was looking at all possible solutions to tackle a surge in cases of the variant first detected in India.

AMERICAS * Advisors to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will meet on Wednesday to discuss recommendations for the use of Pfizer and partner BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine in children aged 12 to 15.

* The United States' track and field team has cancelled its pre-Olympics training camp in Japan out of concerns for safety amid the pandemic, local authorities announced. * Brazilian athletes and staff travelling to Tokyo for the Olympics will receive vaccines with the first doses set to be administered on Friday.

ASIA-PACIFIC * India's coronavirus death toll crossed a quarter million in the deadliest 24 hours since the pandemic began, as the disease rampaged through the countryside, overloading a fragile rural healthcare system.

* The head of the country's main health agency responding to the coronavirus said districts reporting a high number of infections should remain locked down for another six to eight weeks to control the disease's spread. * Technical problems derailed Japan's coronavirus vaccination booking system, compounding frustration over the government's handling of new outbreaks of infections and the inoculation drive.

* Australia tapped Moderna Inc for 25 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine, as the country tries to speed up its vaccination drive and cut reliance on AstraZeneca. * Taiwan reported its largest daily rise in domestic cases, while the stock market tanked after the health minister warned the island could move to a higher alert level, though he later clarified that step was not imminent.

* An analysis of Indonesian healthcare workers inoculated with a COVID-19 vaccine developed by China's Sinovac Biotech showed it was 98% effective at preventing death and 96% effective at preventing hospitalisation, a health ministry official said. MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA * Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera said that economic growth was projected at 3.8% in 2021, down from an earlier estimate of 6.1%, owing to the impact of COVID-19 on multiple sectors of the economy.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS * More clinical and real-world data is needed on how well and for how long COVID-19 vaccines are protective before any decisions should be made on offering third or booster doses, Europe's drug regulators said.

* Pfizer is seeking British approval for the use of its COVID-19 vaccine among 12- to 15-year olds and has submitted data to the health regulator, a company representative said on Tuesday. * Sinovac Biotech has licensed its COVID-19 vaccine for production in five countries - Turkey, Indonesia, Brazil, Malaysia and Egypt, CEO Yin Weidong told Bloomberg News in an interview.

ECONOMIC IMPACT * A sell-off in global shares extended to its longest losing streak in two months on Wednesday as surging commodity prices and growing inflationary pressure in the United States prompted bets on earlier interest rate hikes and higher bond yields.

* Britain's pandemic-battered economy grew more strongly than expected in March as it gathered speed for a bounce-back from its coronavirus slump of 2020, official data showed. (Compiled by Federico Maccioni; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

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