- Africa is struggling to win the battle against the third wave of the coronavirus.
- Data shows Covid-19 could have been spreading in China as early as October 2019.
- Antibodies triggered by two Chinese Covid-19 vaccines are less effective against the Delta variant compared with other strains.
The virus that causes Covid-19 could have started spreading in China as early as October 2019, two months before the first case was identified in the central city of Wuhan, a new study showed on Friday.
Europe
* Britain will next month publish plans to allow fully vaccinated people to travel unrestricted to all countries except those with the highest Covid-19 risk, in a boost for a travel industry wrecked by the pandemic.
* The European Commission estimates European Union countries will receive about 900 million doses of vaccines in the second half of the year, compared to nearly one billion jabs it expected a month ago.
* Stricter rules will be imposed across the Lisbon region and Algarve tourism magnet Albufeira as Portuguese authorities try to control a rise in infections that threatens the country's summer holiday season.
Asia-Pacific
* Downtown Sydney and the city's eastern suburbs, which include Bondi Beach, will go into a one week lockdown as authorities struggle to contain a spike in the highly contagious Delta Covid-19 virus variant in the city.
* Japan said it would send two million additional doses of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine to Taiwan and Vietnam and arrangements were being made to send 1 million doses each to Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.
* A member of the Ugandan Olympic team who tested positive for the coronavirus upon arrival in Japan had the Delta variant, Kyodo News said, adding to concern that the Games, less than a month away, may trigger a new wave of infections.
Americas
* President Jair Bolsonaro said Brazil never paid for or received any doses of a coronavirus vaccine developed by Indian company Bharat Biotech, in response to allegations of irregularities in a deal that is under investigation.
* Venezuela received its first shipment of doses of leftist ally Cuba's Abdala vaccine on Thursday.
Middle East and Africa
* Africa is not winning its fight against the pandemic as a third wave sweeps the continent and countries struggle to obtain enough vaccines for their populations, Africa CDC director John Nkengasong said.
Medical developments
* Antibodies triggered by two Chinese Covid-19 vaccines are less effective against the Delta variant compared with other strains but the shots still offer protection, a Chinese disease control researcher told state media.
* The US Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorisation for the drug Actemra for the treatment of hospitalised Covid-19 adults and paediatric patients, the health agency said.
Economic impact
* Asian shares rose, tracking gains on Wall Street overnight that lifted the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 indexes to record highs after US President Joe Biden embraced a bipartisan Senate infrastructure deal.
* Federal Reserve policymakers are split over what poses the bigger risk to the economy: a still-large jobs deficit or a potential inflation shock.
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