FACTBOX-Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

Shanghai reported on Wednesday no new cases of COVID-19 outside quarantined areas in two districts, raising hopes that the tide was turning in its battle against the epidemic, with some factories around the city making a gradual return to work. 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. ASIA-PACIFIC

* Taiwan firms making chip and electronic components reported a mixed picture on Wednesday on work resumption in the eastern Chinese city of Kunshan after COVID-19 curbs, with some warning deliveries would be postponed until next month. * Shanghai has brought virus transmission outside quarantined areas down to zero in two city districts and the city's COVID-19 outbreak is seeing a downward trend, a city official said on Wednesday.

EUROPE * British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologized to parliament after he was fined by police for breaking lockdown rules, saying he did not know a birthday gathering at the height of the pandemic was in breach of the rules he had set.

AMERICAS * Hospitalisation rates for unvaccinated children aged 5 to 11 were twice as high as among those who were vaccinated during the record COVID-19 surge caused by the Omicron variant, according to a U.S. study.

AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST * Communal meals in which hundreds of people pack around long tables to break their fast during the holy month of Ramadan have returned to Egypt's streets after being widely suspended for the past two years due to COVID-19 restrictions.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS * Moderna said a COVID-19 booster designed to target the Beta variant as well as the original coronavirus generated a better immune response against several virus variants including Omicron.

ECONOMIC IMPACT * If lockdowns in China aimed at containing COVID-19 cause further disruptions to supply chains, the U.S. Federal Reserve will need to take more aggressive action to bring down "much too high" inflation, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said.

* Homeowners in small Chinese cities are battling a rare property market downdraft as buyers keep away, eroding the wealth of millions in a blow to already brittle consumer confidence in the world's second-largest economy. * China surprisingly kept its benchmark lending rates steady on Wednesday, with markets seeing the move as Beijing's cautious approach to rolling out more easing measures as the economy slows due to COVID-19 lockdowns.

* Indonesia recorded a 10.3 trillion rupiah ($717.87 million) budget surplus in the first quarter of 2022, equivalent to 0.06% of GDP, as high commodity prices and an improving domestic economy boost revenue, its finance minister said. * The International Monetary Fund's new chief economist said he is concerned about increasing signals that inflation expectations are on the rise and may become entrenched at elevated levels, prompting more aggressive monetary policy tightening in advanced economies.

* Outgoing trade in Japan was restrained by a decline in car exports and a slowdown in the growth of shipments to Japan's biggest trading partner China, data showed, indicating continuing risk from global supply constraints and the pandemic. * China's exports of marine fuel in March plunged 15% from a year ago, customs data showed, hit by high prices and COVID-19 curbs at domestic ports.