(Bloomberg) — Hong Kong banned flights from the U.K. amid rising infections, while Spain took visitors from the country off its restriction-free travel list. Close to half of Australia’s population is now in lockdown as the nation struggles to contain a spread of the delta coronavirus variant.
Mixing doses of Covid-19 vaccines from Pfizer Inc. and AstraZeneca Plc creates a strong immune response, according to results from a University of Oxford study, a finding that could enable greater flexibility in the use of scarce supplies.
Vietnam’s economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City will maintain social distancing measures for an undetermined time starting Tuesday, amid a growing outbreak. Daily infections in India fell to the lowest since March.
Earlier, Britain reported the most new cases since January that were fueled by the delta variant first identified in India. Even so, an end to restrictions in England is “very likely” to go ahead on July 19, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said.
Key Developments:
The best and worst places to be as the world finally reopensGlobal Tracker: Cases top 181.2 million; deaths pass 3.9 millionVaccine Tracker: More than 2.97 billion doses administeredThe last-and-only foreign scientist in Wuhan lab speaks outU.K.’s Johnson ready to lift Covid rules despite rise in casesHeart problems, blood clots and other vaccine fears: QuickTake
Delta Accounts for Half of German Cases (2:50 p.m. HK)
The delta variant of the coronavirus likely accounts for about 50% of cases in Germany and authorities are pushing to rapidly increase the number of people fully vaccinated against Covid-19 to help check its spread, according to Chancellery Minister Helge Braun.
Germany already has the strictest inbound travel rules in Europe — including a requirement to quarantine for 14 days — for travelers arriving from countries designated virus-variant areas, and the interior ministry is ready to introduce spot checks at the borders if needed, Braun said in an interview with ZDF television.
Spain Takes U.K. Visitors Off List for Restriction Free Travel (2:40 p.m. HK)
Travelers from the U.K. to Spain will have to either certify full vaccination or provide a negative virus test, according to announcement published in Spain’s official gazette Tuesday.
Order backtracks on previous decision, announced in May, that placed U.K. on restriction-free travel list. The decision announced in May had never been put in place because “the qualitative data, specifically regarding the presence of virus variants, weren’t considered favorable,” according to the gazette.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez had announced a reversal in policy for travelers from U.K. yesterday.
Germany Wants Fewer Fans in Soccer Stadiums (2:50 p.m. HK)
German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer appealed to the U.K. government to reduce the number of fans allowed into London’s Wembley stadium for Tuesday’s European Championship match between England and Germany.
It’s “irresponsible” if tens of thousands of people come together in a confined space in countries where the delta variant of the coronavirus is spreading, Seehofer said in an interview with the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper.
The “benchmark” of 20% capacity — or about 14,500 fans — allowed for Euro soccer matches in Munich could also apply for other venues in the championships, he said. According to European soccer’s governing body UEFA, around 45,000 fans will be allowed into Tuesday’s match, or about half the stadium’s capacity.
Daily India Cases Fall to Lowest Since March (1:00 p.m. HK)
India added 37,566 new Covid-19 cases Tuesday, the lowest one-day surge since March 18 which was just before the deadly second wave hit the South Asian nation. The overall tally of coronavirus infections is now just a little over 30 million, making it the world’s second-largest outbreak after the U.S.
As many as 329 million vaccine doses have been administered so far as the government races to curb a possible third wave amid the discovery of a new mutation of the highly-transmissible delta variant.
Thailand Ready to Tackle Outbreak, Minister Says (12:30 p.m. HK)
Thailand will limit the movement of foreign tourists to smaller islands that it’s initially throwing open to vaccinated foreign visitors in the event of a flareup in local coronavirus infections, a minister said.
Phuket, Samui and Phi Phi — among the first places to welcome inoculated tourists without quarantine before a wider national reopening — are all smaller islands and will allow authorities to quickly curb movement if community transmission spikes, Minister of Tourism and Sports Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said. He ruled out the closing of borders to combat any virus clusters stemming from the reopening.
Vietnam Mulls Slow Resumption of International Flights (12:20 p.m. HK)
Vietnam can gradually resume regular international flights by year-end as the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines accelerates domestically and globally, VietnamPlus news website reported, citing a report sent to Ministry of Transport by the country’s Civil Aviation Authority.
Half of Australia’s Population in Lockdown as Delta Spreads (11:10 a.m. HK)
More than 12 million Australians — close to half of the population — are now in lockdown as the nation struggles to contain a spread of the delta coronavirus variant.
On Tuesday, Brisbane became Australia’s fourth regional capital city to restrict movement outside of homes except for essential reasons such as shopping and exercise for at least three days, less than 24 hours after a similar move in Perth. They followed Sydney and Darwin, which over the weekend announced longer lockdowns of up to two weeks.
Los Angeles County Recommends Indoor Masking (10:00 a.m. HK)
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health strongly recommended people wear masks indoors in public places — regardless of vaccination status — as a precautionary measure against the Delta variant.
In the week ending June 12, Delta variants comprised of nearly half of all variants sequenced, L.A. County — the nation’s most populous — said in a statement.
New Zealand to Reopen Travel Bubble With Some Australian States (9:45 a.m. HK)
New Zealand will reopen its quarantine-free travel bubble with the Australian states of Tasmania, Victoria, ACT and South Australia from July 4, Covid Response Minister Chris Hipkins says at news conference.
The pause on travel from New South Wales, Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia remains, and will be reviewed on July 6.
Ho Chi Minh City Extends Virus Curbs (9:30 a.m. HK)
Vietnam’s economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City will maintain Covid-19 social distancing measures for an undetermined time starting Tuesday amid a growing coronavirus outbreak across the metropolis, newspaper Tuoi Tre reported, citing Deputy Mayor Duong Anh Duc at a Monday press conference.
Ho Chi Minh City, which began its anti-virus measures May 31, reported 3,492 local virus cases as of this morning out of the nationwide tally of 12,736 patients from late April, according to data from the health ministry.
Restrictions include shuttering of establishments from gyms to karaoke bars and restricting public transportation, ride-sharing services and taxis.
Asia Loses Preeminence as Best Place to Be While World Reopens (8:45 a.m. HK)
Almost a year and a half into the pandemic, the best and worst places to be in the Covid-19 era are increasingly defined by one thing: normalization.Accordingly, Bloomberg’s Covid Resilience Ranking has added new indicators in its June edition reflecting economies’ progress in reopening – flight capacity recovery and vaccinated travel routes.The addition of the new metrics, and the waning of outbreaks in highly vaccinated places using Messenger RNA vaccines, has meant a new No. 1 in the June Ranking: the U.S.European nations like Switzerland, France and Spain also jump into the top ten on the same positive trajectory of vaccination plus normalization, with their borders open for summer tourism. Meanwhile, previous top performers on the Ranking that stamped out the virus with aggressive, isolationist measures like New Zealand and Singapore drop, as they struggle to find a path to reopen to the world.A rich-poor divide has also solidified, as developing nations like India, Argentina and the Philippines rank at the bottom, facing a perfect storm of vaccine inadequacy, the spread of variants and global isolation.
Indonesia to Start Vaccinating Teens (8:00 a.m. HK)
Indonesia will start offering Covid-19 vaccination to those aged 12 to 17 years old, after last week extending the inoculation to all adults in order to curb a worsening virus resurgence.
“The food and drug regulator has issued an emergency use of authorization for Sinovac vaccine to be applied on teens,” President Joko Widodo said in a press briefing on Monday.
Malaysia Unveils $36 Billion Package (7:50 a.m. HK)
Malaysia unveiled a 150 billion ringgit ($36 billion) package to help people through a nationwide lockdown that was extended for a second time with Covid infections still elevated.
The plan includes a 10 billion ringgit direct fiscal injection and will result in the government disbursing 10 billion ringgit in cash aid to the people by the end of the year, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said on Monday. The announcement marks the fourth stimulus package announced by the government this year.
U.S. Says Don’t Travel to UAE, Uganda (5:45 a.m. HK)
The U.S. increased its travel warning for the United Arab Emirates and four African countries to the highest risk level, telling residents not to go to those nations because of Covid-19.
The UAE has one of the world’s highest vaccination rates, but daily new cases have continued to hover around 2,000 since March. Liberia, Mozambique, Uganda, and Zambia have all experienced recent outbreaks and were put in the same Level 4 category as the UAE, according to a State Department statement.
The revisions follow updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has also led to the lowering of advisories for countries such as Mexico, Canada, Japan and Ireland.
Biden to Mark ‘Independence’ From Virus (5:11 a.m. NY)
U.S. President Joe Biden and his White House are planning a slate of travel and events this weekend — including a barbecue for more than a thousand people — to celebrate his administration’s progress combating the pandemic, though the country fell short of his July 4 vaccination goal.
While coronavirus infections and deaths have fallen dramatically since Biden took office, thanks to an expansive vaccination campaign, the White House fell short of its goal of 70% of U.S. adults receiving at least one shot by July 4. As of Monday, 66.1% of adults had gotten at least one shot.
The country is still recording more than 11,000 cases of Covid-19 per day, on average, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But that’s a better than 95% reduction since U.S. cases peaked on Jan. 10. There have been 287 deaths per day from the disease, on average, for the last seven days.
South Africa Official Death Toll Tops 60,000 (2:30 p.m. NY)
South Africa’s official death toll from Covid-19 has passed 60,000, the National Institute of Communicable Diseases said. Over the last 24 hours 138 deaths from the disease were reported, bringing the total to 60,038, the NICD said in a statement on Monday.
Abu Dhabi to Keep Unvaccinated From Malls (1:30 p.m. NY)
Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, will restrict access to some public places like schools and restaurants unless people are vaccinated. It takes effect Aug. 20.
The Abu Dhabi media office said the decision came after 93% of target groups had been vaccinated. It covers shopping centers, restaurants, recreational facilities, resorts, nurseries, schools and universities. Children under 15 are exempt.
U.K. Reports Most Cases Since January (11:15 a.m. NY)
The U.K. reported 22,868 new Covid-19 cases, the most since Jan. 30, according to its latest update. The number of reported deaths stayed low, with three more reported within 28 days of a positive test. More than 84% of adults in the U.K. have had one vaccine and nearly 62% of adults have had two.
England is “very likely” to see the end of pandemic restrictions on July 19, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Monday, despite the surge in infections fueled by the delta variant first identified in India.
Mixing Doses Found to Offer Strong Protection (11:10 a.m. NY)
Mixing doses of Covid-19 vaccines from Pfizer Inc. and AstraZeneca Plc creates a strong immune response, according to results from a University of Oxford study, a finding that could enable greater flexibility in the use of scarce supplies.
A mixed schedule of the Pfizer shot followed by the Astra vaccine, and vice versa, resulted in high concentrations of antibodies against Covid-19 when given four weeks apart, researchers reported Monday in the Lancet medical journal.
Johnson Sees End to English Curbs in July (8 a.m. NY)
England is “very likely” to see the end of pandemic restrictions on July 19, Johnson said, despite a surge in infections of the new delta variant.
Hospitalization and death rates remain relatively low as the U.K.’s vaccine program progresses, Johnson said, adding that it would be “sensible” to take a few more weeks to analyze the infection patterns and deliver more second vaccine doses before lifting the curbs.
“With every day that goes by it’s clearer to me and all our scientific advisers that we’re very likely to be in a position on July 19 to say that really is the terminus, and we can go back to life as it was before Covid as far as possible,” Johnson told reporters Monday.
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