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Chancellor Angela Merkel will hold crisis talks with pharmaceutical executives, regional German leaders and European Commission officials on Monday in an effort to speed up the continent’s stuttering vaccination attempt.
AstraZeneca Plc will deliver 9 million additional doses of vaccine to the European Union in the first quarter as the bloc tries to inoculation run on schedule. Bayer AG agreed to produce CureVac NV’s experimental coronavirus vaccine to accelerate the rollout of a promising shot conducted in advanced clinical trials.
Valneva SE, a French vaccine developer, the British government said took advantage of an option to order 40 million additional doses of his experimental coronavirus injection for next year.
Infections continued to slow down in many regions of the world, including the US, although concerns remain about new variants. Italy will ease restrictions for most of the country starting Monday.
Main Developments:
- Global Tracker: Cases approach 103 million; deaths exceed 2.2 million
- Vaccine Tracker: More than 98.3 million shots given worldwide
- Governments exploit Covid data for other purposes, with the risk of backlash
- Pfizer or Sputnik? Race to inject requires choice
- Faced with a vaccination crisis, the EU has one enemy of everyone
- Merkel’s handprints are all over Germany deficiencies in the vaccine
- Yes vaccines, but here’s why Covid will never go away: QuickTake
Subscribe to one daily update on the virus by Bloomberg’s Prognosis team here. Click CVID on the terminal for general data on cases and deaths.
Merkel organizes talks on vaccine crisis (16:45 HK)
Chancellor Angela Merkel is holding out crisis talks in an attempt to speed up European vaccination pressure. The video call in Berlin this afternoon comes after Ursula von der Leyen, Commission President, announced that AstraZeneca will deliver 9 million additional doses of vaccine to the European Union in the first quarter.
The infection rate in Germany rose to 90.9 infections per 100,000 people in the past seven days on Monday, from 90.2 on Sunday. The government has said the level should be below 50 to ease restrictions.
Bayer Helps CureVac Produce Its Covid Vaccine (4:20 PM HK)
Bayer AG agreed to produce CureVac NV’s experimental coronavirus vaccine to accelerate the rollout of a promising shot conducted in advanced clinical trials.
The move expands Bayer’s current pact with CureVac beyond just helping with regulatory approvals and worldwide distribution. It follows commitments from fellow European pharma giants Sanofi and Novartis AG to use their manufacturing capacity to scale up Pfizer Inc. and the Covid-19 injection of BioNTech SE.
UK exercises option for 40 million doses of Valneva (4:10 pm HK)
Valneva SE, a French vaccine developer, the British government said took advantage of an option to order 40 million additional doses of his experimental coronavirus injection for next year.
The pledge brings the UK’s order size to 100 million doses, Valneva said. Britain could still purchase 90 million more doses for delivery between 2023 and 2025, bringing the value of the contract to a whopping 1.4 billion euros ($ 1.7 billion) if all options are exercised.
Singapore Seeks Law to Allow Crime Investigation Data (14:51 HK)
Singapore has one bill in parliament on Monday to formalize the use of investigative data in criminal investigations for serious crimes, after it was found that such information was used for that purpose in a murder case.
The law will specify that government agencies may only use personal contact tracking information captured in digital contact tracking systems for contact tracking purposes, except when police officers and law enforcement officers are required to use the information for criminal investigations and criminal proceedings. regarding serious crimes, the Smart Nation and Digital Government Office said in a statement on Monday. Such crimes include murder, terrorism, kidnapping and serious sex crimes.
Tokyo reports fewest new cases since December (2:29 p.m. HK)
Tokyo reported 393 new infections as a declining trend in the Japanese capital continues. While Mondays typically yield lower numbers, the number is the smallest reported for a Monday since December 21, and represents a significant drop from a Monday peak of 1,219 cases on January 11. The seven-day moving average of new cases has dropped to about 850 from 1,812 three weeks ago.
Despite the improving situation, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga looks like one state of emergency this week for major metropolitan areas.
Astra Increases Dose Deliveries Amid Chaotic EU Rollout (1:11 PM HK)
AstraZeneca Plc will generate an additional 9 million vaccine doses to the European Union in the first quarter of this year as the bloc tries to get its chaotic vaccination rhythm on track.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Twitter on Sunday that the drug manufacturer would start deliveries a week ahead of schedule and expand production.
Chinese police seize more than 3,000 doses of fake vaccines (12:30 hrs HK)
Chinese police detained more than 80 suspects involved in the production and sale of fake Covid vaccines in a special campaign against vaccine-related crimes, Xinhua reported. Suspects have been using saline to make fake coronavirus vaccines and have been selling them to the public since September, the report said. The case was brought to light by police in provinces and cities including Jiangsu, Beijing and Shandong.
Biden invites GOP senators to meet to discuss incentive offer (10:18 am HK)
President Joe Biden has invited a group of 10 Republican senators to meet with him over the next few days to discuss their alternative Covid-19 plan. economic stimulus, the White House said Sunday evening.
GOP lawmakers offered a $ 600 billion proposal in a letter to Biden early Sunday, in response to the $ 1.9 trillion plan he drafted more than two weeks ago that the Republicans rejected.
South Korea sees the smallest increase in cases in 10 weeks (9:01 a.m. HK)
South Korea reported 305 new cases in the last 24 hours, the lowest number in 10 weeks. Still, South Korea said on Sunday that it will extend its social distance restrictions for another two weeks as new infections re-emerged last week, reversing a downtrend.
UK reaches vaccine milestone (8:19 am HK)
The UK is set to confirm that residents of every eligible nursing home in England have been given a Covid-19 vaccine, even as a dispute over exports from Europe raises supply concerns.
Jabs have been offered to eligible residents of over 10,000 homes whenever possible, official figures to be shown later Monday. The announcement comes after yesterday’s assurance by International Trade Secretary Liz Truss that the national supply of vaccines is safe and that the country will adhere to the rollout schedule.
Captain Tom from UK hospitalized with Covid-19 (3:15 pm NY)
Photographer: Chris Jackson / Getty Images
Captain Sir Tom Moore, the 100-year veteran who raised nearly £ 40 million ($ 55 million) for the UK health service since the start of the pandemic, was to admittaken to hospital after a positive test for Covid-19. Hannah Ingram Moore said her father was diagnosed and hospitalized last week for “ extra help ” with breathing, the AP reported.
Health Advisor to Biden Warns About Virus Variants (13:46 NY)
A top health adviser to President Joe Biden warned on Sunday that a new variant of the coronavirus circulating in the UK is likely the dominant species in the US and may lead to future restrictions on in-person gatherings.
Photographer: Glen Stubbe / Star Tribune / Getty Images
Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that the national health care system must prepare for a wave of serious cases such as those recently witnessed in England.
NYC Vaccine Data Shows Race Differences (12:34 p.m. NY)
New York City broke down vaccination data for Covid-19 by ethnicity for the first time, with the mayor “Deep problem” with racial inequality.
White residents made up nearly half of the people who received at least one dose, despite making up only a third of the population. Latinos, 29% of the city, accounted for only 15% of the vaccinated. The lowest percentage was among blacks – although they make up nearly a quarter of the urban population, they accounted for only 11% of the vaccinated.
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo said Black New Yorkers are the most reluctant to take vaccines, partly out of suspicion.
Vaccine inequality
White residents of NYC receive a disproportionate number of Covid-19 vaccines
Vaccination records from the New York City Health Department; Population data from US Census 2019
Italy to ease restrictions (11:26 am NY)
Italy reported 11,252 new cases and 237 deaths on Sunday, as it gears up to ease restrictions for most of the country as of Monday. The positivity rate even stayed around 5.2%. Cases in Italy have remained stable in recent weeks and the country has so far avoided the steep increases of some of its neighbors.
Both the Milan and Rome regions will fall into the so-called “yellow zone” from Monday, the lower set of restrictions that allow bars and restaurants to remain open during the day.
– With the help of Jeff Sutherland