Global Shots Pass 500 Million; Biden Boosts Goal: Virus Update

(Bloomberg) -- More than half a billion Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered worldwide, according to the Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker. President Joe Biden set a goal of administering 200 million doses by the end of April, doubling his target for his first 100 days in office.

California became the latest state to make vaccinations available to all adults, starting with people 50 and over starting April 1, and those 16 and older two weeks later. Florida and North California also announced dates for vaccinating all adults before Biden’s May 1 deadline.

Covid cases in the U.S. are rising again, reversing course after months of decline and threatening another setback in the return to normality. India is restricting vaccine exports, a move that will likely hit the world’s most disadvantaged nations hardest.

Key Developments:

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Disney Parks Eye Post-Covid Growth (6:59 a.m HK)

After the pandemic shut down its California theme parks for more than a year, Walt Disney Co. is now looking to shift into growth mode.

The company announced plans Thursday to expand its properties in Anaheim, California, by adding attractions across the street from the existing parks. The multiyear project, which hasn’t been assigned a price tag or a target date, is called DisneylandForward.

Macron Warns of ‘Tough’ Weeks Ahead (6:54 a.m. HK)

French President Emmanuel Macron said new measures to contain the epidemic might be needed in the coming days or weeks. More than a third of France, including Paris, is already locked down, in addition to a national curfew. “The next few weeks will be tough,” he said at a press conference after the European Council summit Thursday.

He spoke the same day France extended a lockdown to three additional regions, as the government wrestles with a surge that is increasingly affecting younger people. For four weeks starting this weekend, the Nievre, Rhone and Aube areas will follow Paris and several other regions with tougher restrictions, Health Minister Olivier Veran said.

New cases reached 45,641 Thursday after hovering around 25,000 in the last weeks.
The pressure on the country’s intensive care units keeps increasing, reaching 93.1% on Thursday, up from 92% a day earlier. The spread of the U.K. variant of the virus is changing the profile of patients in hospitals, with younger people, sometimes without pre-existing conditions, entering intensive care. Fewer old people are being hospitalized as the vaccination campaign starts to bear fruit.

Toyota, Renault to Pause Production in Brazil (6:38 a.m. HK)

Toyota and Renault will temporarily halt production in Brazil, aiming to reduce gatherings at the most critical moment of the nation’s outbreak, according to statements from the two companies. Brazil reported more than 1,000 new infections on Thursday, a record.

As of March 29, four Toyota industrial plants, in the state of Sao Paulo, will pause for up to 10 days. Renault’s Ayrton Senna complex, in Parana state, will halt between March 29 and April 5.

India Restricts Vaccine Exports (6:21 a.m. HK)

India is restricting coronavirus vaccine exports, a move that will likely hit the world’s most disadvantaged nations hardest and exacerbate what the World Health Organization’s head this week called a “grotesque” supply chasm between rich and poor countries.

The world’s biggest vaccine exporter, the country is a key supplier to Covax, a program backed by WHO and partners to deploy shots to every corner of the globe, and India’s decision to pare backshipments threatens the group’s plans to inoculate 2 billion people before the end of the year.

Brazil Breaks Record (5:37 p.m. NY)

Brazil reported more than 100,000 new infections in the last 24 hours, again setting a record as the outbreak there continues to worsen. Total cases neared 12.3 million, the most after the U.S.

Latin America’s largest economy also reported 2,777 fatalities, totaling 303,462, the Health Ministry reported, as the nation’s leaders remained at loggerheads. President Jair Bolsonaro criticized lockdown measures again while Vice President Hamilton Mourao said that virus deaths have risen above any acceptable level.

Brazilian lawmakers are demanding the ouster of Foreign Minister Ernesto Araujo, who they blame for poor diplomatic relations with key vaccine producers.

Astra Told to Supply EU Doses First (5:32 p.m. NY)

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said AstraZeneca Plc must meet its commitments for supplying vaccines to the European Union before it will be allowed to export any doses.

Von der Leyen spoke at a press conference following a virtual summit with EU leaders.

Global Vaccinations Pass 500 Million (4:52 p.m. NY)

More than half a billion Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered worldwide, according to the Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker, less than four months into the rollout of the shots.

So far, the shots have been given in 140 countries around the world. The vast majority have gone to developed nations that secured early doses by the hundreds of millions, and of the doses given so far, 39% of have been administered in the U.S. and the EU. On average, about 12 million doses a day are being administered across the world.

Nations in Africa are beginning to get deliveries of the shots and have started inoculations, but lag behind other countries that got access to vaccines earlier.

South Dakota Outbreak Worsens (4:17 p.m. NY)

South Dakota’s infections rose two thirds over the past two weeks, state data show, and the positive-test rate is near the highest in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The pace of infections is a daily average measured over the past two weeks.

As cases begin to rise again nationally, South Dakota occupies two extremes. It has never had state-wide virus restrictions, though its vaccination campaign is one of the most successful in the U.S. It has vaccinated more than a quarter of its population, while the national average is closer to one-fifth, according to the Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker.

Irish Outbreak Remains ‘Volatile’ (3:26 p.m. NY)

All indicators of the virus in Ireland are static or increasing, ahead of a possible easing of lockdown which has been in place since Christmas. “The situation is clearly volatile and we remain at high risk,” government advisor Philip Nolan told reporters in Dublin. Ireland reported 606 new cases Thursday, with three deaths. While case numbers have dropped 90% since their peak in early January, the government is yet to lift most restrictions that have been in place for three months.

California to Lower Vaccine Age to 50 (2:15 p.m. NY)

California will make vaccinations available to all people aged 50 and over starting April 1 as the supply of doses flowing to the state finally ramps up, Governor Gavin Newsom announced Thursday.

People who are 16 and older will be able to make vaccination appointments starting April 15, he said.

California, with a population of nearly 40 million people, has been receiving about 1.8 million vaccine doses per week. But the state expects that number to grow to 2.5 million doses per week for the first half of April and 3 million per week for the month’s second half.

N. Carolina to Open Shots to All Adults (2:05 p.m. NY)

North Carolina will open up vaccinations to all adults starting April 7, Governor Roy Cooper said, calling it the “biggest change” to the timeline for the shots.

On March 31, the state will also opened up these inoculations to essential workers in industries such as hospitality and retail, chemical and pharmaceutical, and construction, he said.

Biden Doubles Vaccine Goal (1:35 p.m. NY)

President Joe Biden set a goal of administering 200 million Covid-19 vaccine doses by the end of April, doubling his target for his first 100 days in office.

The U.S. is on pace to meet the new goal, Biden said in opening remarks at his first formal news conference on Thursday.

“I know it’s ambitious,” Biden said at the White House. “I believe we can do it.”

Chile Imposes Lockdown on Capital (1:31 p.m. NY)

Chile’s government will impose a full lockdown in the city of Santiago and neighboring districts as it tries to slow down the spread of a new wave of Covid-19 in the country.

The lockdown will begin Saturday and includes 14 districts that had not been shut down yet, the Health Ministry said in a televised press conference. The government also reported that 7,023 new cases were detected Wednesday, the second highest number since the beginning of the pandemic.

U.K. Approves Plan to Lift Lockdown (1:19 p.m. NY)

Prime Minister Boris Johnson won the support of Parliament for his plan to bring England slowly out of lockdown, even as some members of his own Conservative Party protested continued curbs to civil liberties and frustration at the ongoing damage to the economy.

Members of Parliament voted 484 to 76 to extend the government’s coronavirus emergency powers, with Johnson’s “road map” for easing lockdown also entering law. Key dates include the outdoor mixing of households on March 29, the re-opening of non-essential shops from April 12 at the earliest, and the potential for all social-distancing rules to be lifted on June 21.

U.S. Covid Cases Are Rising Again (1:06 p.m. NY)

Covid cases in the U.S. are rising again, reversing course after months of decline and threatening another setback in the return to normality.

The seven-day average of new cases jumped to 57,695 Wednesday, 9.5% above the prior week, marking the biggest increase since Jan. 12, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

While that’s a fraction of the mid-January peak, the change in direction is worrisome as states fling open their economies, variant cases multiply and the country races to vaccinate as many people as possible to stave off another wave.

Kenya Rushes to Vaccinate Elderly (12:53 p.m. NY)

Kenya decided to immediately start vaccinating people who are 58 years and older against Covid-19 as a third wave of infections stretched hospitals in the East African nation.

The announcement by the health ministry expands the first phase of inoculation that started March 5, targeting 1.25 million frontline workers, including health and security personnel and teachers. The surge over the past couple of weeks, with a positivity rate peaking at 22.1%, necessitated the need to start vaccinating the elderly, according to the government.

Pfizer Begins Trial for Children (12:32 p.m. NY)

Pfizer Inc. said that dosing has begun in a pediatric study of its Covid-19 vaccine, a trial that will ultimately involve more than 4,500 children under age 12.

The two-part trial will first study three dose levels in 144 children from age 6 months to 11 years, the company said in a statement Thursday. Once an appropriate dose is established for each of three age groups, 4,500 more kids in the U.S. and Europe will be enrolled in the second part of the trial, which will look at safety tolerability and immunogenicity of the vaccine, the company said.

NYC Moving to Reopen Broadway (10:50 a.m. NY)

New York City is taking steps so that Broadway can reopen in September, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

The city is developing plans to manage crowds before and after shows. Over the next month, it will set up a vaccination site dedicated for theater workers, and is planning pop-up testing sites near the venues, de Blasio said Thursday during a press briefing.

“The show must go on,” de Blasio said.

Florida Lowers Vaccine Age to 40 (10:29 a.m. NY)

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said all Floridians age 40 and over can sign up to get a Covid-19 vaccine starting on Monday. All Floridians age 18 and up will be eligible starting the following Monday, April 5, the governor wrote on Twitter Thursday.

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