FACTBOX-Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

ASIA-PACIFIC * Japan warned on Thursday that a new wave of COVID infections appeared to be spreading rapidly and urged people to take special care ahead of an approaching long weekend and school summer vacation.

A new wave of coronavirus infections is rapidly spreading through Asia, prompting warnings for residents from New Zealand to Japan to take precautions to slow the outbreak and help prevent healthcare systems from being overwhelmed. 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. ASIA-PACIFIC

* Japan warned on Thursday that a new wave of COVID infections appeared to be spreading rapidly and urged people to take special care ahead of an approaching long weekend and school summer vacation. * China has been tweaking its stringent COVID curbs but shows no sign of backing off from its "dynamic zero" policy, and has lagged in vaccination efforts that would enable it to do so, casting a heavy shadow over the world's second-largest economy.

* Several Chinese cities have doubled down on COVID testing, in some cases punishing people who skip tests, while some Beijing residents returning from domestic travel were asked by authorities to wear COVID-monitoring bracelets, prompting widespread criticism by social media users concerned about excessive surveillance. * A COVID-19 outbreak has meant full-scale closure for Macau's six casinos - the only places in China where gambling is legal.

EUROPE * The European Union's ombudswoman criticised the European Commission for failing to find and publish text messages between the executive's president, Ursula von der Leyen, and the head of Pfizer negotiating a massive COVID-19 vaccine deal.

* The number of foreign tourists visiting Portugal in May jumped almost six times from the same month last year but still fell about 9% short of pre-pandemic levels, the National Statistics Institute (INE) said. * Twice defending champion Tadej Pogacar's UAE Emirates cycling team were hit by another case of COVID-19 at the Tour de France when their manager, Joxean Fernandez Matxin, tested positive for the virus.

AMERICAS * Canada on Thursday authorized Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccine for babies as young as 6 months old, making it the country's first vaccine against coronavirus for children under 5, Health Canada said.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS * The European Medicines Agency identified severe allergic reactions as potential side-effects of Novavax Inc's COVID-19 vaccine, a day after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the use of the shot.

* Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE have sought approval from Japan's health ministry for use of their COVID-19 vaccine for use in children aged six months to four years, the companies said. ECONOMIC IMPACT

* The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday that China needs to add more fiscal and monetary policy support to combat an economic slowdown brought on by continued COVID-19 lockdowns, but less-restrictive pandemic containment policies also were needed. * Big wage gains for lower-paid U.S. workers, a hallmark of the pandemic economy, were concentrated in less expensive cities, according to a new study that points to another potential stumbling block in getting the job market fully back to normal.

(Compiled by Shailesh Kuber, Olivier Sorgho and Krishna Chandra Eluri; Editing by Kirsten Donovan, Arun Koyyur, Nick Macfie and Sriraj Kalluvila)