(Reuters) – New daily cases in Australia’s Victoria and New South Wales states fell as authorities look to start easing tough restrictions, while South Korea will begin taking reservations for vaccines from pregnant women this week.
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
* Poland’s daily COVID-19 cases have risen by around 70% in the past week to over 2,000, a government official said, warning the country that a fourth wave of the outbreak is gathering pace.
* The Czech Republic reported more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases in one day for first the time since May 18, data from the health ministry showed.
AMERICAS
* Surging demand for COVID-19 tests from U.S. employers has exacerbated a nationwide shortage of rapid tests in recent weeks and is driving up costs for state and local testing programs, according to industry executives and state officials.
* El Salvador President Nayib Bukele said the country would facilitate a third dose of a vaccine against COVID-19 for those 18 years or older.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* India’s top court ordered state authorities to pay $672 as compensation for each death caused by COVID-19 as a way to help families cope with the loss.
* Singapore’s health ministry reported 3,486 new cases, the highest since the beginning of the pandemic.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Senegal on Monday logged only two new daily COVID-19 infections, the lowest number since the pandemic reached the country and two months after the rate of new cases hovered at record highs.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* AstraZeneca has requested emergency approval from U.S. regulators for its antibody cocktail, another potential major step in the global fight to combat the virus.
* Merck said it had signed a supply and purchase agreement that will provide Singapore with access to its experimental oral COVID-19 antiviral drug, the latest Asian country to try to snap up supplies.
* Australian diagnostic test maker Ellume said it has recalled certain lots of a COVID-19 home test as they may show false positive results due to a recently identified manufacturing issue.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* Asian shares dropped on Wednesday and U.S. benchmark yields rose to a three-and-a-half month top as investors stayed jittery about inflation with oil prices reaching new multi-year highs. [MKTS/GLOB]
* New Zealand’s central bank hiked interest rates for the first time in seven years and signalled further tightening to come, as it looks to get on top of inflationary pressures and cool a red-hot housing market.
* German industrial orders fell more than expected in August on weaker demand from abroad following two months of unusually strong gains due to major contracts.
(Compiled by Ramakrishnan M., Shailesh Kuber and Juliette Portala; Edited by Lisa Shumaker, Shounak Dasgupta and Sriraj Kalluvila)
