Covid-19 live timeline

9:53 am

International update: Global Covid-19 infections near 20 million – new daily incidents average 250,000 – US cases pass 5 million

10 August

Global: Globally coronavirus cases are nearing 20 million, with more than 731,000 known deaths. The current number of confirmed infections stands at 19,869,127, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, with total new cases daily averaging more than 250,000.

US: Covid-19 cases in the US now exceed five million, adding a million cases in just over two weeks, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The nation with the worst coronavirus outbreak hit four million cases on July 23, amid a skyrocketing outbreak in the Sunbelt and political battles over the Trump administration’s handling of the virus response.

Coronavirus infections among US children grew by 40% in the last half of July, according to a report from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association, as the country debated the risks of reopening schools in the fall.

California reported 8,373 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the total to 554,160. Deaths rose by 104 to 10,293. A total of 30.5% of patients in hospitals are in intensive-care units, based on a five-day average, the highest in more than a month, according to state data Sunday.

Brazil: Brazil’s health ministry has reported 23,010 new cases of Covid-19, with 572 new fatalities, as the country continues to struggle with containing the spread of the virus.

Mexico: Mexico’s health ministry reported on Sunday 4,376 new confirmed coronavirus infections and 292 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 480,278 cases and 52,298 deaths, according to Reuters. Mexico has the third-highest coronavirus death tally globally, behind the United States and Brazil.

Australia: Australia recorded its deadliest day of the pandemic on Monday, with 19 deaths. The nation is dealing with an outbreak in its second largest city, Melbourne, where authorities have struggled to contain the spread of the virus, which began in quarantine facilities.

China: In China, new locally transmitted cases fell to just 14 in the past 24 hours, the National Health Commission reported on Monday. The low figure was offset, however, by 35 cases brought into the country by Chinese travellers from overseas arriving in seven different cities and provinces across the country.

UK: The UK saw cases rise by 1,062 on Sunday, going over 1,000 for the first time since late June. As cases rose in the country, new local lockdowns have been implemented in some areas and worries over a second wave of infections were rife.

Greece: Authorities announced a record daily number of 203 new coronavirus cases, with one death. The total number of cases is now 5,623, with 212 deaths. Greece introduced an early lockdown in mid-March, which buffered the country from the devastating effects of the pandemic seen in many of its European counterparts.

New Zealand: New Zealand has reported its 101st day in a row with no recorded community transmission of Covid-19 from an unknown source. All 21 active cases of the coronavirus have been diagnosed in travellers returning to New Zealand from other countries; all of them are in quarantine at the government’s managed isolation facilities.

South Korea: South Korea reported 28 new coronavirus cases on Monday, including 17 local infections raising the country’s total to 14,626.

Italy: Italy reported 463 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, the second-highest number in two months after reaching 552 on Friday. The country has recorded 250,566 cases since late February. Two more deaths were reported.

Vietnam: Vietnam confirmed two more novel coronavirus infection deaths, the ministry of health reported on its website. The nation has reported 384 local infections since the outbreak in Danang on July 25. It now has a total of 841 cases with 13 deaths.

Vaccine news

Russia: Russia boasts that it is about to become the first country to approve a Covid-19 vaccine, with mass vaccinations planned as early as October using shots that are yet to complete clinical trials – and scientists worldwide are sounding the alarm that the headlong rush could backfire.

Lockdown updates

Australia: Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced that the country’s internal border closures were unlikely to be lifted before Christmas.

Venezuela: President Nicolas Maduro has announced the extension of the country’s state of alert for another 30 days, to help contain the spread of the coronavirus.

9:22 am

Coronavirus company news summary – US Navy cancels E-4 exam – Final US Marines released from Australia quaruntine

10 August

The US Navy has cancelled all E-4 exams planned as part of the Active Duty (AD) and Full-Time Support (FTS) Cycle 248, as well as the Selected Reserve (SELRES) Cycle 107. The exams were slated to be held in September this year. The service has also planned to rank order advancement-eligible E-3 sailors using an alternative Final Multiple Score method. The E-5 and E6 exams are being planned to be administered in separate testing windows throughout next month.

The last group of US Marines in the Northern Territory have been released from Covid-19 quarantine. In total, over 1,000 marines have completed quarantine following their arrival as part of this year’s Marine Rotational Force – Darwin (MRF-D). Australian Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said: “The discharge of the final group of personnel from quarantine demonstrates the effectiveness of the testing and monitoring regime established with the Northern Territory Government. The regime of screening, quarantine and testing underscores the priority placed on protecting the local community from Covid-19.”

The Indian Army has gifted ten ICU ventilators to the Nepali Army as part of continued humanitarian cooperation between the two armies. The ventilators are portable and easily transportable and will help Nepali Army in its fight against the Covid-19 pandemic and care for patients requiring intensive care. The devices can be deployed for secondary care in hospitals with ICU, tertiary multispecialty hospitals and dedicated ICUs. They can be used for a wide range of applications such as advanced invasive or non-invasive respiratory support.

7:37 am

Low chance of Covid-19 vaccine being ‘highly effective’

10 August

Scientists across the world are racing to find a vaccine against the Covid-19 virus, which has battered the global economy.

As the world awaits the discovery of a new vaccine, the chances of it being highly effective seem low.

Although 50% effectiveness is still being viewed as acceptable, public health measures need to continue until a highly effective vaccine is found.

Daniel Lacalle, chief economist Tressis SV, shared an article on White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci views of the effectiveness of a coronavirus vaccine.

Dr. Fauci noted that the chances of developing a vaccine that is highly effective are very narrow.

The scientists currently working on vaccines are expecting that the vaccine would be at least 75% effective.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has noted that it would approve a vaccine if it was at least 50% effective.

Dr. Fauci noted that considering the relatively average effectiveness of the vaccines, the public health approach of social distancing and wearing face masks should not be abandoned.

Read more

1:27 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: More than 19,127,000 Covid-19 cases world wide – soaring infections among young people

7 August

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 19,127,000 with more than 715,000 deaths and 11,578,000 recoveries.

Globally cases continue to rise with the US, Brazil, and India remaining the top three most affected countries.

Brazil experienced a spike in the number of daily new cases with more than 110,000 confirmed on 6 August.

Around the world schools have been reopened only to be shut down again quickly after new cases emerge.

Cases in young people have been soaring and risks of a second and/or third wave remain high.

Topias Lemetyinen, MPH, Managing Epidemiologist at GlobalData

9:15 am

Coronavirus company news summary – US DOD funds SAB’s DiversitAb Rapid Response Antibody Programme – Huntington Ingalls Industries provides Covid-19 update

7 August

The US Department of Defense (DOD) has awarded an additional $35.6m to fund SAB Biotherapeutics DiversitAb Rapid Response Antibody Programme. The follow-on award will fund the clinical development and production for SAB-185, a new therapeutic targeted to SARS-CoV-2 without using human donors. It will also support increased manufacturing capacity for rapid response. So far, the company has received three awards worth a total of $72m for its Covid-19 and Scaling its programme.

US military shipbuilding company Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has reported that Covid-19 related delay and disruption estimates across all its programmes resulted in $61m costs in the quarter that ended 30 June. The company’s second-quarter revenues were down by 7.4% to $2.0bn. HII President and CEO Mike Petters said: “The delay and disruption from lower attendance, availability of critical skills, and out-of-sequence work caused by COVID-19 has impacted our ability to complete work as efficiently as initially planned and has added incremental program cost and pushed schedules and milestones to the right, which is incorporated in our results and updated outlook for 2020.”

The US Department of Defense’s (DOD) Joint Acquisition Task Force (JATF) has awarded contracts worth $104m for the purchase of syringes and safety needles. The procurement is part of the country’s Covid-19 vaccination strategy. The items will be placed into the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Strategic National Stockpile (SNS). This will enable rapid vaccination of the US population once a Covid-19 vaccine is developed and made available for nationwide administration.

8:37 am

How the IMF can help mitigate world wide government debt crisis

7 August

Government debt is rising across the world as countries continue to borrow to release funds for economic recovery amid the pandemic.

The rising debt could lead to a global crisis plagued by unemployment, fuel instability and violence.

Tony Addison, professor of economics at University of Copenhagen, shared an article on the ways in which a global debt crisis can be prevented.

It is estimated more than 100 low to middle income countries will have to pay $130bn in debt service in 2020, out of which approximately half of it will need to be paid to private creditors.

An alternative to avoid such a debt crisis is voluntary sovereign debt buybacks, which can help in reducing debt burdens by obtaining discounts on the face value of sovereign bonds.

A multilateral buyback facility managed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) can be implemented to manage funds from a global consortium of countries.

To ensure debt reduction, the IMF can conduct auctions and buyback certain amounts of bonds.

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1:39 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 18.8 million – sustained increase in Iran

6 August

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 18,837,000 with over 708,000 deaths and 11,381,000 recoveries.

World wide, cases continue to rise, with the US, Brazil, and India remaining the top three most affected countries.

The death toll also continues to grow with the US having over 158,000 deaths and Brazil nearing 100,000.

Iran continues to see a sustained infection period with around 2,500 new cases being diagnosed each day since mid-June.

Iran initially had seemed to have control over the virus spread as new confirmed cases rapidly declined through April.

However, they rebounded again in May.

Topias Lemetyinen, MPH, Managing Epidemiologist at GlobalData

10:08 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases approach 19 million – Florida infections pass half million – Trump says virus is ‘going away’

6 August

Global: The coronavirus pandemic death toll passed 707,000 late on Wednesday, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, which relies on official government data. Meanwhile, the global infection rate passed 18.8 million. The US accounts for the highest portion of Covid-19 deaths, with 158,256. The next worst-affected in terms of the number of lives lost is Brazil with 97,256.

US: Donald Trump on Wednesday repeated that he believes coronavirus will “go away”, despite his top public health expert warning that it could take most of 2021 or longer to get the pandemic under control and that it is “unlikely” the virus can ever be eradicated. At a White House briefing, the US president said of Covid-19: “It’s going away, it will go away, things go away, absolutely. No question in my mind, sooner rather than later.”

Florida has surpassed 500,000 coronavirus cases as testing ramps up following a temporary shutdown of some sites because of Tropical Storm Isaias.

A rash of poisonings and four deaths in May and June were tied to drinking hand sanitizer that contained methanol in Arizona and New Mexico, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. The incidents happened after President Donald Trump mused on ingesting disinfectants to treat the novel coronavirus.

California reported 202 new virus deaths, marking its second-deadliest day of the pandemic. The state has had 9,703 Covid fatalities.

Twitter and Facebook have taken action against a video posted by Trump campaign’s account and shared by the US president for breaking the company’s Covid-19 misinformation rules. The clip came from an interview with Fox & Friends in which Trump claimed that children are “almost immune” to Covid-19.

The US Supreme Court lifted a lower court order that required specific steps to curb Covid-19 at four southern California jail facilities that have seen more than 400 cases since the outbreak began.

South Africa: The World Health Organization has deployed a “surge team” of 43 health experts to South Africa to help the country deal with the pandemic, which has seen nearly 530,000 cases confirmed in the country – the fifth-highest in the world – and 9,298 deaths.

Australia: Victorian state premier Daniel Andrews has announced that 471 new coronavirus cases were confirmed overnight, along with eight new deaths. Both figures are lower than Wednesday’s, which marked Victoria’s most devastating day of Covid-19 cases and deaths, with 15 deaths overnight and 725 new cases.

France: France’s daily Covid-19 infections reached the highest in more than two months on Wednesday, with 1,695 new cases. The seven-day moving average stood above the 1,300 threshold for the first time since the end of April when the country was still in lockdown.

Turkey: Fears grow in Turkey as daily virus cases top 1,000. Officials have expressed concern over the rising number of coronavirus cases as the daily infection toll exceeded 1,000 for the second day in a row.

Brazil: Brazil’s Supreme Court ruled that President Jair Bolsonaro’s government must adopt measures to stop the spread of novel coronavirus to the country’s vulnerable indigenous communities. A majority of the justices voted to give the government 30 days to draw up a plan to reduce the threat to Indigenous people from Covid-19, which could wipe out some tribes.

Lockdown updates

US: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said travellers who have visited 35 states or territories with high Covid-19 transmission rates are required to complete the state’s traveller form as they pass through checkpoints at key entry points into the city.

North Carolina will remain in Phase 2 of its reopening plan for another five weeks, Governor Roy Cooper said in a twe​et. The order keeps businesses including bars, movie theatres and bowling alleys closed while limiting gatherings to ten people indoors and 25 people outside.

Japan: Hideaki Ohmura, the governor of Japan’s Aichi Prefecture, announced a regional “state of emergency”, urging people to stay home at night and businesses to close altogether or close early to curb the coronavirus. The measures will continue through August 24, a period that coincides with the Obon holidays, when schools and many companies close.

Netherlands: Amsterdam and the port of Rotterdam on Wednesday made face masks compulsory in certain busy areas, including the Dutch capital’s Red Light district, as coronavirus infections showed a worrying spike. The new measures come as the number of infections doubled in a week in the country, where more than 55,000 people have now been infected and some 6,150 have died.

Germany: Germany addeed Belgium’s virus-hit Antwerp to quarantine list. Antwerp province was added to the list of coronavirus risk zones, requiring travellers arriving from the region to go into quarantine for 14 days unless they can produce a negative Covid-19 test.

Economic updates

Italy: Italy’s national civil aviation authority has threatened to suspend Ryanair’s permit to fly in the country over alleged non-compliance with coronavirus safety rules, but the low-cost carrier denied flouting them.

China: Small businesses in China are being told by their foreign banks that loan extensions mandated by the government no longer apply to them as the nation dials back one of the relief measures unleashed after the coronavirus lockdown.

Philippines: The Philippines plunged into recession after its biggest quarterly contraction on record, according to data from the country’s Statistics Authority. Gross domestic product shrank 16.5% on-year in the second quarter, data showed, as the Philippine economy reels from one of the world’s longest stay-at-home orders that has wrecked businesses and thrown millions out of work.

North Korea: Leader Kim Jong Un directed his government agencies to act immediately to stabilise the livelihoods of residents in a city locked down over coronavirus concerns, state media reported. North Korea declared an emergency and locked down Kaesong near the inter-Korean border in late July after finding a suspected virus case there. It has not confirmed yet if the person tested positive.

9:16 am

Coronavirus company news summary – Israel announces Covid-19 task force – DOD awards contract to Pall to build breathing filter manufacturing line

6 August

Soldiers from the US Army Reserve (USAR) are supporting Urban Augmentation Medical Task Force (UAMTF)-7452 to assist the state of Texas in Covid-19 relief efforts. The 85-soldier team consists of medical providers, nurses, respiratory specialists, an infectious disease specialist and behavioural health professionals. They will strengthen and expand the civilian medical community structure by delivering various medical capabilities. The task force includes soldiers from 14 US states. It is the third UAMTF mobilisation to support Texas.

The Israeli Military has announced the establishment of a new taskforce to combat the spread of coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, reported The Associated Press. The task force will be responsible for contact tracing and work in full cooperation with the Ministry of Health, all government ministries, and the local authorities. It will help enhance the testing systems, the epidemiological research, and quarantine methods, as well as develop a process that can reduce the Covid-19 related wait times effectively. Meanwhile, the elite IDF Intelligence Technological Unit, Unit 81 is working to find innovative technological solutions to battle Covid-19.

Michigan National Guard Task Force 182 has conducted hundreds of free Covid-19 testing in six counties of Upper Peninsula. The six counties are Kingsford, Crystal Falls, Menominee, Escanaba, Newberry and St. Ignace. The tests assist in tracing asymptomatic individuals who unknowingly spread the virus while in public. It also provides data that helps keep a check on increasing numbers of Covid-positive residents. The Michigan National Guard has been conducting tests at various locations in the US state.

The US Department of Defence has awarded $4.9m contract to Pall Corporation to build a new breathing filter manufacturing line within an existing Pall manufacturing facility to boost ventilator filter production. Once the new line becomes operational in the fall 2021, the ventilator filter production capacity will increase from 485,000 units per month to 650,000 units per month. This will allow Pall to help address the surging demand for ventilator filters driven by coronavirus.

7:58 am

19 million at risk in testing times for US Affordable Care Act

6 August

The Covid-19 pandemic has led to millions of job losses in the US. Apart from losing their income, people are at risk of losing employer based health insurance.

Although the government has alternate measures such as the Affordable Care Act, its ability to serve all those in need will be tested during the pandemic.

Timothy McBride, Bernard Becker Professor at Washington University, shared an article on how more than 26.8 million people in the US are at risk of losing their health insurance due to the Covid-19 pandemic and related job losses.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has acted as a safety net for those people with low or moderate income that are losing employer based health insurance.

However, the pandemic will test how the ACA is able to serve all the people who lose health insurance from employers.

Without ACA, more than 19 million people could become uninsured and unable to access healthcare facilities.

Read more

1:52 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 18.5 million – major spike of new infections in Spain

5 August

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 18,563,000 with over 701,000 deaths and 11,156,000 recoveries.

Globally cases continue to rise with the US, Brazil, and India remaining the top three most affected countries.

The US appeared to have turned a corner by slowing the number of new infections, however, the reopening of schools and students returning to college campuses has significantly raised the risk of increased spread.

Spain has seen a major spike in the number of new cases for the first time since the peak of infection in late March with more than 8,500 cases confirmed on 3 August.

It remains unclear if this new peak is a second wave or spikes in localized infections.

Topias Lemetyinen, MPH, Managing Epidemiologist at GlobalData

10:59 am

Covid-19 supply chain vulnerability raises prospects of Japanese accession to Five Eyes

Voices calling for Japan to join the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing group have grown louder over recent weeks, including the promotion of the idea by British MP Tom Tugendhat, the Japanese Defense Minister Tarō Kōno and the Henry Jackson Society. Currently, the Five Eyes intelligence community consists of the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The coronavirus pandemic that has gripped the world has been instrumental in sparking debate over the future of the group.

Click here to read the full article.

9:58 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 deaths pass 700,000 as infections exceed 18.5 million – Australian states increase lockdowns

5 August

Global: Global infections of Covid-19 have passed 18.5 million. Meanwhile, the global death toll from Covid-19 surpassed 700,000 on Wednesday, according to the Johns Hopkins University and Reuters tallies, with the United States, Brazil, India and Mexico leading the rise in fatalities. Nearly 5,900 people are dying every 24 hours from Covid-19 on average, according to Reuters calculations based on data from the past two weeks.

Latin America: Latin America has surpassed Europe to become the region with the highest coronavirus death toll worldwide, according to a Reuters tally. The region has now recorded more than 206,000 deaths, approximately 30% of the global total.

US: California reported 4,526 new cases, its lowest daily tally since June and well below the 14-day average of 8,476 infections, according to state health data. There were 113 added deaths, compared with the two-week daily average of 125. That brings the total to 9,501.

New Zealand: New Zealand must prepare for another local outbreak of the coronavirus, the Director-General of Health warned. It’s inevitable that there will be a case of community transmission of Covid-19, Ashley Bloomfield told Radio New Zealand on Wednesday.

Czech Republic: The Czech Republic reported on Wednesday its biggest daily jump in new coronavirus cases since the end of June as a recent uptick in infections stays elevated.

Vaccine News

The World Health Organization has urged caution over a coronavirus vaccine that Russia has been developing, the Telegraph reported, citing a document from the organization.

Lockdown updates

Australia: Queensland state will close its border with New South Wales (NSW) to hold back a second wave of Covid-19 infections. A surge in coronavirus cases in Melbourne, the country’s second-largest city, has forced the state of Victoria to impose a night curfew, tighten restrictions on people’s movements and order most businesses to stop trading from Wednesday night.

UK: Labour leader Keir Starmer has told Boris Johnson that he has a month to fix Britain’s failing test-and-trace system or risk sending the country into a second lockdown as schools go back in September.

Schools in England should be the last to close and the first to reopen in the event of a second lockdown, the children’s commissioner has said, adding that young people had sometimes been an “afterthought” during the crisis. Anne Longfield said pubs, restaurants and non-essential shops should be shut ahead of schools in the case of emergency restrictions.

Japan: Toshiro Muto, chief executive of Tokyo’s Olympic organizing committee, told the Financial Times that the event will still take place next summer, and that the national government must take a larger role since a comprehensive virus strategy will be crucial.

Economic updates

Global: Gold has soared to a record high price of $2,030.72 per ounce as financial markets move money into ultra-safe assets that they think are less likely to lose value if the world slumps into a prolonged recession thanks to Covid-19.

US: US Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar will visit Taiwan in coming days, making the highest-level visit by a US official in 40 years in a move likely to anger China which claims the island as its own.

US losses from coronavirus-related fraud and identity theft have reached nearly $100m since the pandemic emerged in March, while complaints of Covid-19 scams have at least doubled in most states, a consumer protection group has said.

Virgin Atlantic has become the latest corporate casualty of the pandemic after declaring itself bankrupt and has filing for protection from creditors in the US. The move means it can restructure its debt and plot a course back into operation.

7:51 am

How bitcoin could ease US budget deficit

5 August

The US recorded the largest budget deficit in its history in June owing to the stimulus packages released to manage the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Jon Matonis, chief economist at Cypherpunk Holdings, shared an article on how the US printed more money than in the first two centuries since its founding.

The US had a budget deficit of $864bn in June, which is larger than the total debt incurred between 1776 and the end of 1979.

The article notes that the government should tackle the deficit by moving away from paper money to Bitcoin, as there is no inflation or hyperinflation associated with the cryptocurrency.

A decentralised financial structure in which everyone can participate at a very low cost is needed.

In other news, new lockdown restrictions imposed in Melbourne are expected to prolong Australia’s recession until the end of the year.

Australia recorded two consecutive quarters of negative growth and the fresh lockdowns may lead to another quarter of negative growth.

Read more

2:27 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 infections pass 18.3 million – South America and India struggle to contain spread

4 August

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 18,317,000 with more than 694,000 deaths and 10,930,000 recoveries.

Globally, cases continue to rise as the US, Brazil, and India remain the top three most affected countries, while South America also continues to see increasing numbers of new cases at a high rate.

However, the US may have reached a turning point with the number of daily new cases declining for the last four days.

India seems unable to slow the spread of disease with around 50,000 new cases being confirmed each day for the past ten days.

South Africa on the other hand appears to have passed the point of peak infection with new cases declining each day since 24 July.

Topias Lemetyinen, MPH, Managing Epidemiologist at GlobalData

10:11 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 infections near 18.3 million – Trump rejects US lockdown as cases pass 4.7 million

4 August

Global: Covid-19 cases have reached almost 18.3 million with more than 693,000 deaths according to Johns Hopkins University.

Latin America: Latin America broke through five million confirmed cases of Covid-19 on Monday according to a Reuters tally, underscoring the region’s position as the area of the world hardest hit by the novel coronavirus pandemic. Brazil has the second-worst coronavirus outbreak in the world after the US, with more than 2.75 million and 94,665 deaths, according to health ministry data.

US: The United States has added 48,395 new coronavirus cases pushing the total number to 4.73 million, according to a Reuters tally. The news agency also reported another 582 deaths, adding to the total of almost 156,000.

China: China reported 36 new cases of Covid-19 (including 6 imported cases). Of the 30 local cases, 28 are in the western province of Xinjiang, and two in the eastern province of Liaoning.

For the first time in two weeks, Hong Kong reported fewer than 100 new cases of Covid-19 in a day. The city is experiencing its third and worst wave of the outbreak since the virus first appeared there in January.

Brazil: President Bolsonaro’s chief of staff, General Walter Souza Braga Netto is the seventh Brazilian minister to have contracted Covid-19. Last week, Bolsonaro’s wife tested positive, following her husband’s infection.

Iran: One person is dying from Covid-19 every seven minutes in Iran, state television said on Monday, as the country’s health ministry reported 215 new deaths from the disease. The combined death toll in Iran rose to 17,405 on Monday while the number of confirmed cases rose by 2,598 to 312,035. Of those, 270,228 have recovered.

New Zealand: New Zealand has recorded no new cases of Covid-19. There are 22 cases of the disease in the country, all in managed isolation. The country’s health director general, Ashley Bloomfield, warned that a single case outside of quarantine facilities could turn into a wider outbreak if people were not vigilant.

South Korea: South Korea has reported 34 more cases of the coronavirus, with the number of imported cases almost twice that of local infections, Yonhap news agency reported on Tuesday. The 21 imported cases and 13 local infections raised country’s total Covid-19 infections to 14,423, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

Italy: The number of new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Italy has fallen below 200 for the first time in a week, with 159 new cases registered, according to AP news agency quoting the health ministry. That brings the total number of cases in Italy to 248,229 and deaths to 35,166 as of the end of Monday.

Mexico: Mexico’s health ministry has reported 4,767 new confirmed coronavirus cases and 266 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 443,813 cases and 48,012 deaths, according to Reuters news agency.

Vietnam: Vietnamese authorities issued a stay-at-home order for Bien Hoa, the capital city of Dong Nai province bordering the nation’s commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City, the nation’s fourth municipality to undergo such a home lockdown.

Vaccine News

The World Health Organization chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has warned that there may never be an effective Covid-19 vaccine.

Lockdown updates

Global: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that the world faces a “generational catastrophe” because of school closures amid the coronavirus pandemic and said that getting students safely back to the classroom must be “a top priority”, according to Reuters.

US: President Trump has rejected a national lockdown to bring the coronavirus pandemic in the US under control and insisted the US had done “very well” fighting the virus. The US has recorded in excess of 4.7 million cases and more than 155,000 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins tracker.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner instructed police in the fourth-largest US city to begin issuing warnings and citations to anyone not wearing a mask in public. The mayor said in a tweet that people meeting certain criteria will be exempted.

Blow-out parties and rising cases nationally prompted New Jersey to lower crowd caps and New York to call for stricter distancing enforcement or risk resurgence of the coronavirus in the pandemic’s early US epicenter.

UK: The UK’s plans to block further spikes in coronavirus allow for ministers to lock down London, Boris Johnson’s spokesman said, as officials prepare for a resurgence of Covid-19 in the months ahead.

Australia: The state of Victoria has declared a state of disaster and imposed strict lockdown following the surge in cases of the disease, and the reporting of at least 439 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday. The state also said that it will deploy its military and that anyone who has contracted Covid-19 and caught outside their home in breach of isolation orders will face fines of as much as A$20,000 ($14,250),

Philippines: The Philippines has begun a lockdown of 27 million people, imposing stricter measures in an attempt to halt the country’s spiralling coronavirus case numbers. The measures were reintroduced on Tuesday after the country’s infection tally topped 100,000 and a coalition of health groups issued a “distress signal” urging President Rodrigo Duterte to act.

Economic updates

Singapore: Singapore plans to expand the range of business visitors to boost its hard-hit tourism sector, with the return of mass travel still a long way off amid the pandemic, according to the head of the country’s tourism agency.

9:14 am

Coronavirus company news summary – Thai MOD quarantines US troops – Australia deploys additional 500 personnel – Russian MOD reports positive vaccine results

4 August

The US Department of Defense (DOD) has reached a $31m Defense Production Act (DPA) Title III agreement with North American Forgemasters. The funding will allow the company to produce ultra-large iron and steel forging in support of the US Navy and the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. It will also enable the company to safeguard a skilled workforce and help retain critical capabilities.

The Thai Ministry of Defense (MOD) has revealed that 103 US troops have been put under a 14-day quarantine in Thailand. US troops arrived in the country yesterday to take part in joint training activities later this month, reported BenarNews. It follows after nine Thai soldiers tested Covid-19 positive. The soldiers participated in bilateral exercise Lightning Forge 2020 in Hawaii last month.

Australian state Victoria is set to deploy an additional 500 military personnel to enforce Covid-19 isolation orders. Nearly A$5,000 ($3,564) fine will be imposed on all those who violate the self-isolation rules. Speaking to reporters, Victoria state Premier Daniel Andrews was quoted by Reuters as saying: “There is literally no reason for you to leave your home and if you were to leave your home and not be found there, you will have a very difficult time convincing Victoria police that you have a lawful reason.” Currently, there are about 1,500 personnel in the state.

The Russian Defence Ministry has said that volunteers participating in a Covid-19 vaccine test were found to be immune to coronavirus following tests. The ministry’s Zvezda broadcasting service reported: “The research results showed clearly that all volunteers had a clear immune response resulting from vaccination.” The final medical examination of these volunteers was carried out on 3 August in the Defense Ministry’s Main Military Clinical Hospital. It was carried out by the ministry along with the Russian National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology.

7:45 am

How the US government can help families in need at no extra cost

4 August

The next stimulus package in the US is one of the most debated issues as to what should be included and what should be avoided.

Continuation of the $600 weekly payments, reopening of schools, and ensuring adequate child care facilities is important to ensure economic recovery.

However, journalist Pedro da Costa  shared an article on how emergency financial assistance can be released more quickly to the American population if the government changes a simple rule.

The current method of direct payments as part of the stimulus package took nearly three weeks to reach the people and is not helping the families in need.

Further, the overdraft fees and bank interest rates cut into the money provided by the government.

Incorporating changes to the Expedited Funds Availability Act of 1987, which covers how long a bank can hold money will help address this issue.

The changes can help in releasing funds immediately and does not cost anything for the government.

Read more

12:28 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases continue to rise past 18 million – US, Brazil and India most affected

3 August

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 18,093,000 with more than 689,000 deaths and 10,700,000 recoveries.

Globally, cases continue to rise as the US, Brazil, and India remain the top three most affected countries.

South America also continues to see increasing numbers of new cases at a high rate.

Incidence rates in South America remain very high with Brazil, Peru, and Chile, all having infection rates of over 13,000 cases per 1,000,000 population.

Sao Paolo has seen the highest number of confirmed cases of any region in the World, putting it ahead of California, Florida, and South Africa.

Topias Lemetyinen, MPH, Managing Epidemiologist at GlobalData

10:15 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases exceed 18 million with more than 689,000 deaths – widespread lockdown extensions

3 August

Global: Covid-19 cases have passed 18 million with more than 689,000 deaths according to Johns Hopkins University.

Herd immunity against the coronavirus may take years to develop, Jaap Goudsmit, adjunct professor of epidemiology and infectious diseases at Harvard, said in an interview with Dutch daily De Telegraaf.

US: The United States reported a record 1.87 million cases of Covid-19 in July, more than twice the figure for the previous record month, April, when 860,000 new cases were reported, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. May saw 690,200 new infections, while June saw 820,000 cases. US infections are approaching 5 million, with 4,667,957 confirmed.

Mexico: Mexico’s health ministry has reported 4,853 new confirmed coronavirus cases and 274 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 439,046 cases and 47,746 deaths, according to Reuters news agency.

Brazil: Brazil has recorded 25,800 additional confirmed cases and 541 deaths in the past 24 hours, according to Reuters. The country has registered more than 2.73 million cases of the virus since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 94,104 as of the end of Sunday, according to the ministry data.

India: India reported nearly 55,000 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, down from the previous day’s record of 57,118. At least 37,364 people have died in India during the pandemic so far.

Vietnam: Vietnam is rushing to build a 700-bed makeshift hospital to cope with an outbreak in the central city of Da Nang, as the health minister warned the current strain of the virus is more contagious than those previously seen in the country.

China: The number of new Covid-19 cases in China’s far north-western region of Xinjiang continue to fall, with 28 reported on Monday. China reported 43 new cases nationwide, seven of them imported and eight in the north-eastern province of Liaoning.

Seven Chinese health officials arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday, the first of a 60-person team that will carry out widespread Covid-19 testing in the territory as it races to halt another wave.

UK: Millions of Covid-19 tests – which can offer results in 90 minutes and do not need to be administered by a health professional – will be rolled out to British hospitals, care homes and laboratories in the coming months, Reuters quoted health secretary Matt Hancock as saying.

Germany: The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 509 to 210,402, Reuters reported on Monday, quoting the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases. The reported death toll rose by seven to 9,148, the tally showed.

South Korea: South Korea has confirmed 23 new cases – 20 from overseas and three local transmissions – amid a downward trend in the number of locally infected patients, AP reported. The cases announced on Monday by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention took the country’s total to 14,389 cases and 301 deaths.

Italy: The number of new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Italy nudged lower to 239 in the last 24 hours, while eight deaths were recorded in Lombardy, the epicentre of the country’s epidemic.

Singapore: Singapore’s Ministry of Health confirmed an additional 75 cases of Covid-19 infection, of which six are imported and 69 are local cases who have no recent travel history abroad.

Sweden: Sweden must expect to count its dead from the coronavirus in the “thousands,” Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said in an interview in Dagens Nyheter. The biggest Nordic economy, which has opted for less restrictive measures than many countries in the fight against the pandemic, has had more than 330 deaths after confirmed cases topped 6,000 this week.

Lockdown updates

Australia: Residents in the city of Melbourne will be subject to an overnight curfew for the next six weeks, and be banned from travelling more than 5km to go shopping or to exercise, as Victoria attempts to get the number of new coronavirus cases under control. Premier Daniel Andrews announced that from 6pm on Sunday, residents in the Melbourne metropolitan area would be under curfew for six weeks until 13 September.

Spain: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced plans to extend the country’s lockdown by two weeks until 25 April. “I understand it’s difficult to extend the effort and sacrifice two more weeks,” Sanchez said in a televised speech. “These are very difficult days for everyone.” A longer lockdown would be subject to cabinet and legislative approval.

UK: A major incident has been declared in Greater Manchester in England in response to increases in coronavirus infection rates across “multiple localities”.

UK prime minister Boris Johnson is considering new lockdown measures in England should there be a second wave of coronavirus infections. Plans are being assessed after a rise in Covid-19 cases forced the prime minister to slow the lockdown easing on Friday, with proposed relaxations for the leisure and beauty sectors delayed.

Greece: Greece is extending its national lockdown, with restrictions on movement, until early April 27, Deputy Citizen Protection Minister Nikos Chardalias said. The country introduced a total lockdown on 22 March after moving quickly to put in place restrictions following the first confirmed case on 26 February. Greece so far has 1,673 cases and 68 deaths.

Singapore: Singapore will make some incoming travellers wear an electronic monitoring device to ensure compliance with coronavirus quarantines as the city-state gradually reopens its borders.

Honduras: Honduras will extend its curfew for another week in an effort to curb the pandemic. Honduras first imposed a curfew, which is in effect daily between 5pm and 7am, in March.

UAE: Dubai imposed further restrictions on the movement of people and halted metro services as the Middle East’s business hub seeks to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

9:28 am

Covid-19 vaccines must be distributed globally to tackle the pandemic

3 August

Development efforts towards Covid-19 vaccines are going at a fast pace but doubts remain on the worldwide availability of them.

Hoarding of vaccines and lack of cooperation to distribute them may further complicate the efforts to control the pandemic. A coordinated effort towards distribution of vaccines is needed.

Chad P. Bown, senior fellow at Peterson Institute for International Economics, shared a video on the need for cooperation when it comes to vaccination.

As pharmaceutical companies continue to carry out research into the development of a vaccine for Covid -19, uncertainty remains on the availability once a viable vaccine is discovered.

Every country in the world may not be able to produce these vaccines particularly developing countries.

Further, sufficient doses of vaccines may not be available in the beginning leading to hoarding of vaccines.

The video highlights the need for a coordinated effort to distribute vaccines equally to curb the spread of the disease.

With all the countries interdependent on one another for their economic growth, it is essential to distribute the vaccines and reduce the economic damage caused by the disease.

Read more

9:13 am

coronavirus company news summary – DOD contracts Curative for oral fluid swab test kits – ADF expands support to Victoria’s Covid-19 response

3 August

Around 1,400 Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel have been deployed to support Victoria’s Covid-19 response. Some of the tasks being performed by the personnel are contact tracing, data management, logistics and planning, public health testing, support paramedics with the transport of non-emergency patients and more. If required, the personnel will also support aged care facilities and response centre in the state. Currently, about 3,200 ADF personnel are deployed across Australia as part of Operation Covid-19 Assist.

The US Department of Defense (DOD) has contracted Curative for the supply of oral fluid swab test kits. Under the $42m contract, the company will provide a total of 250,000 Covid-19 test kits to more than 100 military treatment facilities across the DOD. It will also cover testing at Curative’s lab, conduct laboratory validation studies, personnel training, custom software integrations with electronic health records, shipping, and test results.

Colorado National Guard (CONG) soldiers and airmen have achieved Covid-19 testing milestone in support of the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment. More than 20,000 Coloradans has been tested at 122 testing sites in 28 counties and 34 cities. Joint Task Force-Centennial has employed Mobile Testing and Training teams at the request of the US state. CONG is also performing administrative handling and receiving, labelling, validating and preparing the kits for testing. Currently, 120 CONG members are on duty in the fight against the pandemic.

1:30 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 17.3 million – daily incident rates rising in India

31 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 17,322,000 with over 673,000 deaths and 10,155,000 recoveries.

The Central and South American region remains a global hotspot for Covid-19, with five countries in the region among the top ten highest daily incident rates globally.

Mexico has consistently reported over 6,500 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 per day.

In addition, Panama is ranked number one in terms of per capita daily incident rates globally.

India has surpassed Brazil in terms of daily incident rates and is now ranked second globally behind the United States.

India reported over 49,000 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 yesterday and overall has over 1,638,000 confirmed cases to date.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology  at GlobalData

9:54 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 17.3 million – infections rising in US mid West – US deaths pass 152,000

31 July

Global: World wide Covid-19 cases have passed 17.3 million, with more than 673,000 deaths according to Johns Hopkins University. US cases are nearing 4.5 million.

The World Health Organization has warned that spikes in coronavirus transmission in a number of countries were being driven by young people “letting down their guard”. “Young people are not invincible,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual news conference in Geneva on Thursday.

Countries have made “a deep under investment in public health infrastructure,” said Mike Ryan, head of the World Health Organization’s Health Emergencies Program. Ryan said he was surprised by countries’ unpreparedness for the contact tracing and testing that would be necessary.

US: Coronavirus infections appear to be picking up in the Midwestern United States, the coordinator of the White House Coronavirus Task Force said. According to Fox News, the coronavirus outbreak is “moving up” into Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska from the south “because of vacations and other reasons for travel.

California recorded 194 new virus deaths, second only to the 197 reported Wednesday and above the 14-day average of 112. Total fatalities now number 9,026.

India: India’s death toll climbed to 35,718, surpassing fatalities in Italy, the former European epicentre of the coronavirus epidemic.

Mexico: Mexico’s health ministry posted 639 new deaths from coronavirus on Thursday bring the country’s toll to 46,000, almost the same as the United Kingdom which has the third-highest death toll worldwide from the pandemic.

Argentina: Argentina posted a record daily increase of 6,377 new cases, bringing the country’s total to 185,373. There were 130 new deaths, taking the death toll to 3,441.

Japan: Japan does not need to reimpose a state of emergency chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, said on Friday, reiterating the government’s stance amid a surge in new infections across the country. The country reported a record high for new cases for the second day in a row on Thursday with at least 1,274 cases, including a record 367 in Tokyo.

Vietnam: Vietnam has reported 45 new coronavirus infections in the city of Danang, marking the country’s biggest single-day jump in cases, as the health ministry sent more health experts to the central city in a bid to combat the outbreak.

China: Hong Kong reported a new daily record of coronavirus cases, logging 149 more infections by Thursday end. Amid the rise in cases, authorities reversed a ban on indoor dining, along restaurants to operate under limited hours and with limited capacity.

Iran: Iran’s government ignored repeated requests from senior prison officials for help in containing coronavirus in the country’s overcrowded jails, according to Amnesty International.

Australia: Victoria reported 627 new cases in the past 24 hours, a day after suffering a record 723 additional infections. There were eight more deaths.

Lockdown updates

UK: New restrictions have come into force in the north of England, including people not being able to mix with other households. The measures apply in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and East Lancashire after an increase in cases. Households may go to hospitality, for instance, bars and pubs, but new guidance will make clear that two households should not go to hospitality together.

France: Some French cities are expected to introduce additional face mask requirements. From Friday in Orleans, in central France, masks will be required in open-air markets and after 9:00pm along the Loire river, where crowds of people have been gathering in the evenings. The mayors of Bayonne and the nearby Atlantic resort of Biarritz also announced that face masks would be compulsory in their city centres starting next week.

China: China tightened travel restrictions in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang province, requiring people arriving in the city from regions deemed to have high infection risks to undergo a two-week quarantine.

Philippines: President, Rodrigo Duterte, says restrictions in the capital Manila will remain until mid-August. He also announced free vaccines to combat a surge in infections that has overwhelmed health care workers and facilities. President Duterte extended quarantine restrictions, limiting movements of the elderly and children, and the operations of businesses from restaurants to gyms.

Indonesia: The resort island of Bali has reopened to domestic tourists after an almost four-month lockdown for the coronavirus pandemic.

Botswana: Botswana’s capital city Gaborone has returned to a two-week lockdown to stem its latest surge in coronavirus infections.

Economy updates

US: The US economy shrank by an annual rate of 32.9% between April and June, its sharpest contraction since demobilisation following WW2, government figures revealed on Thursday.

Southeast Asia: Is on the brink of a “socio-economic crisis” caused by the Covid-19 pandemic that could reverse decades of poverty reduction, the United Nations has warned.

9:27 am

Coronavirus company news summary – AMPV faces delays – US Army research Covid-detecting dogs – Pentagon awards GSK vaccine contract

31 July

Initial deliveries of multipurpose combat vehicles worth $15bn to the US Army by BAE Systems have been postponed by at least five months due to start-up troubles that were worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic, Bloomberg reported. The first three units were supposed to be delivered in March but now have been deferred until mid-August.

The US Army and the University of Pennsylvania have signed a cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) to explore if dogs can safely detect biomarkers produced by the Covid-19 virus in humans. Researchers at the university have trained dogs to detect ovarian cancer and diabetes. Under the project, dogs will be trained to focus their attention down to only the Covid-19 immune response odour.

The Pentagon has announced the award of a contract worth $342m to UK pharmaceutical firm GlaxoSmithKline for the delivery of Covid-19 vaccines to US troops. GSK was the only firm to have made a bid for the contract. Under the terms of the contract, the firm will support military locations and personnel throughout the continental US and outside the continental US. This work, which will be performed in North Carolina, comes with an estimated completion date of 28 February 2021.

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy conducted training for its new warplanes, including the H-6G and H-6J bombers, in the South China Sea, a defence ministry spokesperson was quoted as saying by ECNS.CN. The training, which was conducted as a routine part of the annual plan of the PLA Navy, is intended to improve the technical and tactical skills of pilots.

8:32 am

Covid-19 may need multiple vaccinations

31 July

Several pharmaceutical companies are racing to develop a vaccine for the Covid-19 virus that has wreaked havoc on the world economy.

While one shot of the vaccine was initially thought to provide immunity against the virus, reports are now emerging that two or more annual vaccinations may be required.

Daniel Lacalle, an economist and author, shared an article on AstraZeneca CEO’s concerns that the unpredictable nature of the Covid-19 virus may require annual vaccinations.

AstraZeneca is currently working on a vaccine in partnership with the Oxford University, which has produced a positive immune response in early stage human clinical trials.

Based on the technology used for developing a vaccine for SARS 1, the immunity provided by the vaccine may last for only 12 to 18 months.

The exact required vaccination period is not known due to the unpredictable nature of the virus.

In other news, Ludovic Subran, chief economist at Allianz, shared an article on a surge in insolvencies in the second quarter of 2020 across the world.

Approximately 147 companies with a turnover of more than €50m ($56.2m) went insolvent during the quarter.

Read more

1:36 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 deaths pass 667,000 – daily infection rates falling in US

30 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 17,054,000 with over 667,000 deaths and 9,964,000 recoveries.

The United States fell to ranking seventh globally in terms of per capita daily incident rates, however, the United States is still ranked number one in terms of cumulative incidence.

Florida has surpassed New York and is now ranked as the second state with the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases, reporting over 451,000 confirmed cases.

South Africa reported over 7,200 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 yesterday and over 7,000 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday.

These are the two lowest daily incident rates reported by South Africa since the beginning of July.

However, South Africa still remains as ranking fourth in cumulative incidence rates globally.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology at GlobalData

9:45 am

International Update: World wide Covid-19 cases pass 17 million – second wave hits Japan – surge continues in Latin America

30 July

Global: World wide Covid-19 cases have passed 17 million, with more than 667,000 deaths according to Johns Hopkins University. US cases now exceed 4.4 million while Brazil now has more than 2.5 million infections.

US: The United States continues to have by far the highest number of Covid cases and deaths in the world, as the country passed 150,000 fatalities late on Wednesday, according to Johns Hopkins University figures. California, Texas and Florida each reported record daily increases in deaths from Covid-19 Wednesday.

With US cases and deaths continuing to climb, researchers at Johns Hopkins University are calling for a “reset” of the country’s coronavirus response.

Mexico: Mexico reported 5,752 more Covid-19 infections, according to Health Ministry data, as cases continue to surge in Latin America. The country’s death toll rose by 485 to 45,361 – with Mexico set to overtake the UK as the hot spot with the third-highest number of deaths worldwide from the virus.

Australia: Australia has reported a record rise in coronavirus infections and deaths, with the state of Victoria announcing more than 700 new cases and 13 deaths, as the state continues to battle significant outbreaks in the aged care sector and among healthcare workers.

Brazil: Brazil’s outbreak set a national daily record on Wednesday with 69,074 new confirmed cases and 1,595 related deaths.

Ukraine: Ukraine reported a record daily high of 1,197 new coronavirus cases on July 30, the country’s council of security and defense said.

Japan: Japan is bracing for a surge in the number of coronavirus infection after fresh cases exceeded the 1,000 mark for the first time. Tokyo confirmed 367 new coronavirus infections, national broadcaster NHK said, topping the previous record of 366 cases on 23 July.

Vietnam: Authorities in Hanoi, the Vietnamese capital, say they will test some 21,000 people who recently returned from Danang where an outbreak of coronavirus was confirmed last weekend.

Papua New Guinea: An Australian medical emergencies team has been deployed to Papua New Guinea where the outbreak has deteriorated in recent days. AFP news agency says the country’s pandemic response centre was closed yesterday after a senior adviser was diagnosed with the virus, and the health minister is also being tested.

China: China has reported 105 new coronavirus cases in the mainland, up from 101 cases a day earlier. The National Health Commission says 96 of the new cases were confirmed in the far western region of Xinjiang, while five were in the northeastern province of Liaoning, one in Beijing, and three imported cases.

Germany: Germany recorded the highest number of new coronavirus cases in about six weeks, while the country’s infection rate remained just above the key threshold of 1.0.

Pakistan: Pakistan announced that it had added 1,063 new cases, for a total of 276,288. Its Health Ministry said the country’s death toll had reached 5,892. In South-East Asia, Thailand reported six new cases, bringing its total to 3,304.

Lockdown updates

Italy: The Italian Government extended the duration of the Covid-19 emergency decree to from 31 July to 15 October, according to an emailed statement.

Economy updates

US: It seems that talks between United States congressional leaders and the White House on a next round of coronavirus spending have stalled as the clock ticks down on measures that banned evictions and boosted unemployment benefit payments.

Denmark: Danish firms have been reluctant to tap a government aid package that provides funds to cover fixed costs for those hurt by virus-induced lockdown, the Berlingske newspaper reported. So far they have only tapped 3.1 billion kroner ($500 million) of the 65.3 billion kroner allotted, the report said, citing government data.

9:10 am

Coronavirus company news summary – Pentagon deploys medics to Texas – Royal Thai Army suspends overseas training

30 July

The Royal Thai Army has suspended participation of its soldiers in overseas military training, Thai Army’s anti-Covid-19 unit director General Nattapon Srisawat was quoted by Pattayamail.com as saying. This decision was taken after nine soldiers out of the 151 soldiers, who returned from a joint exercise with the US force codenamed Lightning Forge 2020, were infected with the coronavirus. These soldiers returned from Hawaii to the country on 22 July. During the Covid-19 pandemic period, only necessary training events are being permitted.

The Pentagon has deployed over 250 army medical troops to five hospitals in Texas to strengthen Covid-19 response capabilities. Texas is currently reeling under the aftermath of Hurricane Hanna and also has the highest rate of Covid-19 infections in the country. US Army North deployed three UAMTFs of army reservists to hospitals in Rio Grande Valley and Coastal Bend regions. The medical troops were sent at the request of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The count of Covid-19 active cases among US service members and their family members across Japan has come down by 50 to 139 over the past few days. US Forces Japan commander Lt. Gen. Kevin Schneider said that the US armed forces are encouraging its personnel and their families to arrive via Yokota Air Base in Tokyo instead of other airports in the Tokyo area, reported Stripes.com. US Army Japan based in Kanagawa prefecture reported four new Covid-19 cases on Wednesday.

8:19 am

The US needs to borrow – but lenders may be hard to find

30 July

The global economy earlier lent money to the US enabling the country to manage its public debt.

However, with the majority of the countries facing economic turmoil due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the US may not find lenders so easy to come by.

Brian Riedl, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute shared an article on the rising national debt.

The Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent stimulus packages has led to the increase in national debt in 2020 to $4tn.

By 2030, the national debt held by the public is expected to reach $41tn without accounting any additional stimulus packages planned to be announced.

The article questions as to who will lend the government the trillions of dollars, which is expected to create an unprecedented burden.

The Federal Reserve may have to continue buying government debt in the future.

In other news: The US government is considering a proposal to reduce the $600 per week unemployment benefits to $200 per week until October.

Read more

3:59 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Eastern Mediterranean region a hotspot as global coronavirus cases near 16.8 million

29 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 16,770,000 with over 658,000 deaths and 9,769,000 recoveries

The Eastern Mediterranean region remains a hotspot for Covid-19, particularly in terms of per capita daily incident rates.

Oman is currently averaging more than 250 new cases per day per million population. Many countries in the region are reporting more than 1,000 new cases per day including Iran, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

Colombia reported over 8,100 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 yesterday, its third highest daily incident rate to date.

The country remains ranked as number fifth globally in terms of daily incident rates.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology  at GlobalData

10:51 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 16.7 million as deaths exceed 660,000 – vaccine expected by December

29 July

Global: Global coronavirus infections passed 16.7 million, according to Johns Hopkins university. Global deaths from Covid-19 now exceed 660,000.

The WHO says the Covid-19 pandemic is “one big wave”, not seasonal. It warned against complacency in the northern hemisphere summer since the infection does not share influenza’s tendency to follow seasons.

US: Florida reported another record one-day rise in coronavirus deaths on Tuesday, and cases in Texas passed the 400,000 mark, fuelling fear that the United States is still not taking control of the outbreak and adding pressure on Congress to pass another massive economic aid package.

China: China’s National Health Commission has reported 101 new cases – up from 68 previously – the highest since mid-April. Of the new cases, 89 were found in the far western region of Xinjiang where mass testing is underway.

Australia: Victoria recorded 295 new cases of coronavirus and nine more deaths. It was a reduction of 89 from yesterday’s figure of 384, which in turn was 150 fewer than were recorded in the record high numbers on Monday. Nine people have died, which is close to the national record ten deaths reported in the state last week.

India: Over half the people living in Mumbai slums have had Covid-19, according to a city-commissioned study. Blood tests on 6,936 randomly selected people found that 57% of slum-dwellers had virus antibodies.

Germany: An urgent track and trace operation is underway in Berlin after a couple tested positive for coronavirus after returning from Manchester. 50 people who have had contact with the couple since their return are in quarantine, of whom 13 have so far tested positive.

Vietnam: The Vietnamese government is warning authorities in Hanoi to prepare for a potential coronavirus outbreak. The warning follows local media reports that a person working at a pizza restaurant in the capital had tested positive for the virus.

Japan: Mortality across Japan dropped by 3.5% in May from a year earlier, with the nation recording a total of 108,380 deaths from any cause, data released Tuesday by the nation’s Health Ministry show.

Vaccine news

US: “It’s a reasonable statement to make that by December we’re going to have a safe and effective vaccine,” Anthony Fauci, the US’s top infectious disease expert, said on a webcast with American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten.

Lockdown updates

Hong Kong: Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, has sounded an alarming warning over the city’s health system. With the new wave of mostly locally transmitted infections, Hong Kong was “on the verge of a large-scale community outbreak which may lead to a collapse of our hospital system and cost lives, especially of the elderly”, she said. This came as the city’s strictest anti-virus measures yet came into force today, as it recorded its seventh consecutive day with case numbers in the triple figures and the government faced backlash over its extensive quarantine exemptions.

New Zealand: New Zealand’s government announced it will start charging some travellers for the cost of their two-week stay in quarantine. The announcement comes as the country recorded two new cases of Covid-19, both diagnosed in returning travellers to the country who are quarantined in managed isolation facilities.

New Zealand’s national airline, Air New Zealand, has frozen all new ticket bookings to Australia until 28 August. In a statement, the airline said the hold was due to Australian government restrictions on the number of passengers arriving in the country.

Spain: Spain insisted it was still a safe destination for tourists despite tackling 361 active outbreaks and more than 4,000 new cases. Several countries have nonetheless imposed quarantines on people returning from Spain, including its biggest tourist market, Britain.

Italy: Italy extended its state of emergency until October. This means the prime minister will continue to have the power to impose a lockdown and other safety measures without needing the approval of parliament.

Economy updates

Global: Global air travel is recovering more slowly than expected and it will take until 2024 to return to pre-pandemic levels, the trade association for the airline industry has said.

Aid group Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF) is urging the US diagnostics firm Cepheid to “refrain from profiteering off of the pandemic” and cut the price of its Covid-19 tests (Xpert Xpress SARS-CoV-2) to $5 per test, from the nearly $20 it currently charges in the world’s poorest countries.

US: Republicans and Democrats in the United States Congress are divided over a $1 trillion coronavirus aid package that Republicans announced on Monday.

9:11 am

Coronavirus company news summary – US DoD contracts Immunome for biosynthetic convalescent plasma

The US Department of Defense (DOD) has contracted biotechnology company Immunome for the development of biosynthetic convalescent plasma (BCP) for Covid-19. The $13.3m funding will see the company use its technology to quickly assess the wider immune response of recovered Covid-19 patients. It will do this by generating up to 10,000 B cell hybridomas from each patient and “isolate the most potent antibodies against this viral threat”. Immunome will use a method that will help deliver a process to produce a BCP alternative to convalescent plasma that could include four to six “highly potent anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies”.

India’s Defence Institute of Advanced Technology (DIAT) has developed a new bed isolation system for Covid-19 patients. Named Aashray, the low cost, reusable medical solution is designed to create “suction /negative pressure near exhale, and further filtering and disinfecting the aerosol”. This helps in maintaining the isolation of the infected person properly and reduce the virus spread. Each bed isolation system features a main duct equipped with UV light and filters circuit of Pre, fine, and HEPA filter and suction blower. Cleancore Solutions is the prototype manufacturer and a unit of ten beds can be purchased for around Rs1,00,000.

West Virginia National Guard (WVNG) and Peruvian Air Force (FAP) have participated in a video teleconference to share information on military response efforts to the Covid-19 pandemic. The two parties proposed that their respective medical detachments to “connect directly to exchange lessons learned, best practices and personal protective equipment techniques and procedures, and updated aeromedical evacuation procedures for Covid-19-positive individuals”. They also agreed on the possible creation of “a virtual Officer Professional Development” for the FAP doctors and a joint operation for training and idea-sharing between them.

7:50 am

Why economic stimulus packages need to focus on future growth

29 July

As the US government deliberates on the next stimulus package, experts urge the need for a sustainable fiscal policy that can promote economic growth.

Mohamed A. El-Erian, chief economic adviser at Allianz, shared an article on his outlook for the US economy.

He noted that policy makers should not repeat the same solutions to deal with the economic crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The solutions should rather focus on promoting economic growth in the future.

The US economy showed signs of recovery in June as retail and home sales increased but later flattened out as lockdown restrictions were re-imposed.

El-Erian noted that the government should offer more money to states to cover the revenue lost due to the pandemic.

He also noted that testing and healthcare should be improved to bring the infection rate under control.

In other news: Unemployment levels have been rising across the world impacting the earnings of the future generations.

Gregory Daco, chief US economist at Oxford Economics, shared an article on how the pandemic is expected to impact the earnings of future generations in Canada.

The unemployment rate for youth increased from 10.3% in February to a historical high of 29.4% in May.

The current year’s high school, college and bachelor degree graduates are expected to lose approximately $25,000 or more over the next five years.

Read more

2:12 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 16.5 million – five day average increases in Brazil, India, Mexico, South Africa

28 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 16,500,000 with over 654,000 deaths and 9,590,000 recoveries.

The five day average of daily confirmed Covid-19 cases has decreased in the United States, Peru, Colombia and Russia.

However, the five day average of daily confirmed Covid-19 cases has increased in Brazil, India, Mexico and South Africa.

Iran has reported over 293,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19, ranking tenth globally for the highest number of confirmed cases.

The number of deaths per day has been steadily increasing throughout July, and yesterday Iran reported 216 deaths, a 10.77% increase in deaths from the day prior.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology at GlobalData

9:41 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 deaths pass 650,000 – infections near 16.5 million – Google to keep work from home in place until July 2021

28 July

Global: Global coronavirus deaths passed 650,000 as new surges prompt fresh curbs. More than 100,000 deaths have been recorded since 9 July, and the global toll has doubled in just over two months. Infections are rapidly nearing 16.5 million world wide.

The UN says nearly seven million more children will suffer growth stunting as a result of the coronavirus pandemic affecting food supplies. Writing in The Lancet, a team of experts modelled the impact on 118 poor and middle-income countries. They found the prevalence of moderate or severe wasting among children under five would increase by 14.3 percent, which works out to an extra 6.7 million cases.

Philippines: The Red Cross in the Philippines is urging people to be more vigilant as Covid-19 cases in the country jump by more than a thousand each day.

China: Mainland China has reported 68 new cases of coronavirus, with 64 of them locally transmitted. 57 of the local cases were diagnosed in the far western region of Xinjiang, according to state media.

Australia: The state of Victoria has reported 384 new cases of coronavirus and six deaths in the past 24 hours. On Monday, the state reported a record 532 cases.

Lockdown updates

US: Google employees will keep its employees home until at least July 2021, the Wall Street Journal reported, marking the largest tech firm to commit to such a timeline in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

UK: Britain’s decision to impose a two-week quarantine on people travelling from Spain is unfair, Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez said. He added that the Spanish government is in touch with British authorities in a bid to get the country to reconsider its position.

Lebanon: Lebanon re-imposed severe Covid-19 restrictions for the next two weeks. It has shut places of worship, cinemas, bars, nightclubs, sports events and popular markets, after a sharp rise in infections.

Economy updates

South Africa: The International Monetary Fund approved $4.3bn in aid to South Africa to help it fight the coronavirus pandemic. The country’s finance minister, Tito Mboweni, in June predicted the economy would shrink 7.2% in 2020, its deepest slump in 90 years.

9:39 am

Coronavirus company news summary – US Army & Marines deliver PPE to the Philippines – Airbus develops medevac app

28 July

Service members of the US Army and Marine Corps have delivered an additional $230,600 in personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical supplies to hospitals in 11 cities across the Philippines. The deliveries were made in collaboration with the Philippine Air Force, Army, and Coast Guard. With the new donation, the total US government Covid-19 assistance to the Philippines has reached more than $20m. Delivered in cooperation with the Philippine Office of Civil Defense and Department of Health, the assistance will provide much-needed PPE and other essential equipment to medical clinics from Luzon to Mindanao to support frontline workers in the fight against the virus.

India is set to receive ventilators, test kits, and other medical equipment from a French Air Force aircraft as part of Covid-19 assistance by the country, its embassy said. Recently, France President Emmanuel Macron announced the donation of medical equipment to India, in addition to the provision of technical expertise. The medical assistance package will involve a donation of 50 Osiris-3 ventilators and 70 Yuwell 830 ventilators with BiPAP mode to India. Additionally, the country will receive 50,000 serological IgG/IgM test kits and 50,000 nose and throat swabs from France.

Airbus has developed a new app-enabled health monitoring system for military medevac (medical evacuation) flights which is now demonstrating its capabilities in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. The Smart Flying Hospital system will enable medical personnel to better care for patients onboard lifesaving medevac airlift missions. At the same time, the system will transmit data to hospitals on the ground so that doctors can anticipate resources before their arrival. It can be used by patients to insert a sensor into their ear to record the heart rate, breathing rate, temperature as well as oxygen concentration. The Smart Flying Hospital is set to undergo trials onboard A400M military airlifter built by Airbus, next year.

Parsons and life plan community Knollwood run by the Army Distaff Foundation (ADF) have collaborated to help protect residents and staff during Covid-19. As part of the partnership, Parsons’ DetectWise health monitoring solution has been installed in the main entrance of Knollwood’s campus in Washington DC for screening valuable information regarding the health of employees, residents, and visitors. This is aimed at reducing the spread of the virus. Using sensors, the solution will be capable of measuring body temperature. In conjunction with a mobile-based questionnaire and artificial-intelligence driven analytics, it also helps users assess the risk profile of an individual being symptomatic for Covid-19.

7:50 am

US fiscal aid delays could make 28 million homeless – countries struggle to control second wave of Covid infections

28 July

Rising unemployment rates, end to unemployment benefits and surge in Covid-19 cases may soon leave people homeless in the US.

Sudeep Reddy, managing editor at Politico, shared an article on how the recession induced by the Covid-19 pandemic is causing a housing crisis that is worse than the 2008 crisis.

Approximately 50% of tenants in the US have been burdened by rent during pandemic.

The situation has mainly resulted because fiscal aid applications for unemployment benefits are not being cleared quickly.

As a result, one third of US households have not been able to make their full housing payments for July.

By October, more than 28 million people in the US may be evicted if action is not taken.

In other news, economist Christophe Barraud, shares an article on how the several countries are struggling to control a second wave of Covid-19 infections and are imposing fresh lockdowns.

Read more

1:50 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 deaths near 650,000 – US records more than 65,000 infections in a day

27 June

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 16,264,000 with over 648,000 deaths and 9,407,000 recoveries

The United States, Brazil and India are ranked as the top three countries globally with the highest daily incident cases.

The United States reported over 65,000 new confirmed Covid-19 cases yesterday and over 900 deaths.

Brazil reported over 51,000 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 cases yesterday and over 1,200 deaths.

India reported over 48,000 new confirmed Covid-19 cases yesterday and over 700 deaths.

Russia continues to report a steadily declining daily rate of incident cases.

However, Russia is still ranked as the seventh highest number of daily incident cases globally and the fourth highest confirmed Covid-19 cases globally, reporting over 811,000 confirmed cases.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology at GlobalData

9:49 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 16.2 million – US suffers 1,000 Covid related deaths for five straight days as cases pass 4.2 million

27 July

Global: Global Covid-19 cases passed 16.2 million. Cases climbed by over 250,000 for four straight days, with the total deaths currently 648,937, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker.

US: The US has suffered more than 1,000 deaths a day from Covid-19 for five days running, as cases surge in southern and western states, the national caseload nears 4.2 million and the death toll approaches 150,000.

Brazil: Brazil has registered an additional 555 deaths attributable to the novel coronavirus over the last 24 hours and another 24,578 confirmed cases, Reuters reported, quoting the country’s health ministry.

India: India has for the first time recorded over 50,000 cases in one day. The Times of India reported that India’s one-day case total was higher than 50,000 for the first time on Sunday, taking the country’s total to 1.4 million cases – the third-highest worldwide.

Mexico: Mexico’s Health Ministry has reported 5,480 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infection and 306 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 390,516 cases and 43,680 deaths.

China: China recorded 61 new coronavirus cases on Monday – the highest daily figure since April, propelled by clusters in three separate regions that have sparked fears of a fresh wave. The bulk of 57 new domestic cases were found in the far northwestern Xinjiang region, where a sudden outbreak in the regional capital of Urumqi occurred in mid-July.

Australia: Australia saw its highest one-day case increase of the pandemic so far, after the state of Victoria recorded 532 new cases, along with six more deaths of people aged in their 50s to 90s. In addition, New South Wales recorded 17 new cases, about average for the last week. Of the new cases, eight are international travellers in hotel quarantine.

New Zealand: New Zealand reported another day with no new cases of Covid-19 – the third day in a row. All of the country’s 21 active cases of the virus were diagnosed in travellers returning to the country, all of whom are quarantined in government-managed isolation facilities.

Papua New Guinea: Coronavirus cases in Papua New Guinea have nearly doubled in a weekend, with the emerging pandemic threatening to overwhelm the country’s already-fragile healthcare system.

Afghanistan: The number of confirmed infections to Covid-19 has passed 36,000 in Afghanistan as the death toll in Kabul topped 500, amid rising concerns about a second wave of the pandemic over the upcoming Eid celebration.

Spain: Spain’s Covid-19 death toll could be 60% higher than the official figure. An investigation by Spanish newspaper El País, in which reporters counted regional statistics of suspected, as well as confirmed fatalities, reached a total of 44,868 deaths.

Germany: The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 340 to 205,609, Reuters reported on Monday quoting data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases.

South Korea: South Korea’s new coronavirus cases have fallen back to below 30 as imported cases dwindled from a record high over the weekend, according to Yonhap news agency.

Serbia: Serbia has reported a record number of daily cases of the new coronavirus, according to AP news agency. Health authorities said that 467 people have tested positive for the virus in the past 24 hours, the highest number since the start of the outbreak. They said eight people have died.

Lockdown updates

US: The co-ordinator of the White House’s coronavirus task force, Dr Deborah Birx, told reporters in Kentucky on Sunday that that federal health officials recommend that five US states – Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia – “close their bars, cut back indoor restaurant capacity and limit social gatherings to ten people,” the Louisville Courier Journal reports, as well as recommending that “100%” of people wear masks when they are in public.

Spain: Spain is in talks with the UK about exempting the Canary and Balearic Islands from strict quarantine rules.

UK: From midnight on Sunday, travellers returning from Spain to the UK have been forced to quarantine for 14 days, following a surge of cases in the country.

Germany: Some 500 workers are in quarantine on a large Bavarian farm to contain a mass coronavirus outbreak, German officials said, as they announced free Covid-19 tests for local residents. A total of 174 seasonal workers have tested positive for the virus since Friday.

Morocco: Morocco will stop people entering and leaving some of its biggest cities from midnight to contain a surge in coronavirus cases, the interior and health ministry said on Sunday.

North Korea: North Korea has declared a state of emergency in a border town over a suspected coronavirus case. State news agency KCNA said leader Kim Jong Un also imposed a lockdown in Kaesong after a person who illegally crossed the border from South Korea displayed symptoms of the virus.

Vietnam: Vietnam will evacuate 80,000 tourists from the city of Danang, the government announced in a statement, following the discovery of four locally transmitted coronavirus cases over the weekend – the first cases in the country for 99 days.

Austria: The popular resort town of St Wolfgang, Austria, has ordered restaurants and clubs to close early and urged people to avoid going out as it grapples with a new outbreak of the coronavirus.

Economy updates

Japan: Japan’s economy minister says the government will urge businesses to aim for 70 percent telecommuting and enhance other social distancing measures amid a rise in coronavirus cases among workers, some infected during after-work socialising, Reuters news agency reported.

9:39 am

Coronavirus company news summary – DoDEA announces school guidelines for US Army families – Seven Nepal Army personnel test positive

27 July

The US Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) is offering a choice between returning to campus or registering for virtual school online to parents and students as it prepares to welcome students back to a safe and Covid-free environment. Schools of DoDEA will follow CDC and DoD Covid-19 recommendations to mitigate risks to students as well as staff on campus. When a distance of six feet cannot be maintained, face masks will be required.

Indian President Ram Nath Kovind has donated Rs2m to the Army hospital for the purchase of equipment to help doctors and paramedics combat Covid-19. The amount will be used to buy powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR) units that enable medical professionals to breathe during surgeries and protect them from infection, according to an official communique. The contribution from the President has been made possible due to an exercise to economise expenditure at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Seven Army personnel from Nepal and 22 migrant workers placed in various quarantine centres in Bara district have tested positive for Covid-19 infection. The infection was confirmed by a laboratory located at Narayani Hospital. After testing positive, all 22 migrant workers and the Army personnel have been kept in isolation, and are currently under observation in Kalaiya, Bara. The Himalayan Times reported that more than 50 specimens were collected upon contact tracing of Devtal Rural Municipality chief and deputy chief. They were tested positive for Covid-19.

8:00 am

US needs additional financial stimulus to recover from Covid-19 downturn

27 July

Additional stimulus to deal with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in the US will be required over the next few years.

Sectors such as child care have been impacted by the pandemic leaving parents vulnerable to lower incomes in the future.

John Van Reenen, professor at MIT Economics, shared an article on the next stimulus package being considered by the US government.

Although politicians project that the US economy may require $3tn in stimulus, macroeconomists highlight the need to incorporate automatic fiscal stabilisers.

Unemployment benefits under the CARES Act are set to end in July although experts have called for an extension of the benefits.

As jobs are yet to return to normal levels, unemployment benefits are essential to protect households from bankruptcy.

Meanwhile, Anthony DeRosa, a journalist, shared an article on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the child care system in the US.

The article notes that the economic impact of the collapse of the system will be visible for the next 20 to 30 years, and that more stimulus was injected to save airlines rather child care.

Read more

1:29 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 15.5 million – numbers rising in South Africa – increasing infections in nine US states

24 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 15,526,000 with over 633,000 deaths and 8,873,000 recoveries

In the United States, Florida and Texas are both now averaging more than 100 deaths per day and Arizona is averaging more than 80 deaths per day.

Notably, Arizona is reporting more than 1.1 daily deaths per 100,000 population which is more than double the current rate in Florida and Texas.

Other states that continue to report an increase in incident cases are Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington.

South Africa remains as ranking fifth for the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases globally, reporting over 408,000 cases.

Additionally, South Africa is ranked fourth globally for total daily incident cases.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology  at GlobalData

9:48 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 15.5 million – US infections exceed 4 million – more than 633,000 deaths world wide

24 July

Global: There now more than 15.5 million known Covid-19 cases worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University, and over 633,000 deaths.

US: The US surpassed four million coronavirus cases on Thursday, after more than 1,100 new Covid-19-related deaths were reported in a single day on Wednesday for the first time since late May.

UK: Former UK prime minister Tony Blair believes coronavirus will not be eliminated. He urged the UK government to focus on containment measures to see the country through a second wave.

South Africa: President Cyril Ramaphosa says the country’s coronavirus cases have risen to over 400,000.

Australia: The state of Victoria has reported 300 new coronavirus cases and six deaths, a record one-day number of fatalities for the state. Yesterday’s numbers were 484 new cases and five deaths, three of which were connected to aged care clusters.

China: China reported 21 new coronavirus cases in the mainland for July 23, down from 22 cases a day earlier. Of the new infections, the National Health Commission said 13 were in the far western region of Xinjiang and two were in Dalian city in the northeastern province of Liaoning. The remaining six were imported cases.

Lockdown updates

China: The port city of Dalian in Liaoning province, home to nearly six million people, will introduce a wave of coronavirus testing to stamp out a small cluster of cases, authorities said, with state media reporting communities will be locked down.

South Africa: President Ramaphosa said the cabinet has decided that all public schools should be closed for the next four weeks from Monday with some exceptions.

Japan: Senior Olympic official John Coates has reiterated that Tokyo must stage a simplified summer Games next year with the health and safety of athletes the most important consideration in the planning, Reuters reports.

Economy updates

Global: The devastating economic toll the coronavirus crisis is taking around the world could spark huge waves of fresh migration once borders reopen, the head of the Red Cross warned in an interview with AFP.

Costa Rica: The Central American Bank for Economic Integration approved a $300m loan to Costa Rica to help stabilise the local economy, which has been hit hard by restrictions aimed at containing the new coronavirus.

Turkey: Turkey’s parliament approved a law allowing President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to extend a layoff ban imposed to combat the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

9:36 am

Coronavirus company news summary – DoD donates PPE to the Maldives – USS Nimitz approved to administer Covid-19 CCP

24 July

The US Navy’s Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) has secured approval to administer Covid-19 Convalescent Plasma (CCP). The US Army Medical Research and Development Command has certified the carrier as an authorised site. The vessel received 20 units of CCP from Naval Hospital Guam as part of an effort by the Department of Defense (DOD). In May, the DOD started an effort to collect 8,000 donated units of plasma from patients who have recovered from Covid-19 illness.

The US Department of Defense (DOD) has funded the personal protective equipment (PPE) donation for Maldives’ frontline responders combatting Covid-19. The PPE donation is worth $150,000 and will help bolster the nation’s pandemic response efforts and keep its frontline responders safe. It is the third donation to the Maldives. The US is also funding a $2m package of support for the Maldives. US Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) to Sri Lanka and Maldives Martin Kelly said: “The United States is proud to provide protection for Maldivian healthcare workers as they care for Maldivians suffering from Covid-19.”

Michigan National Guard’s 126th Army Band has assisted Feeding America food banks in mobile meal distribution and supporting communities during Covid-19 pandemic. The team helped process more than 1.5 million pounds of product. Some of the activities carried out by them were preparing warehouse orders, picking order pallets for other distribution sites, packaging whole food products, and emergency food boxes, sorting donations, and supporting mobile food drives.

8:05 am

Unemployment rising in US as bankruptcy threats increase

24 July

The US government is yet to decide on the whether to continue the federal Paycheck Protection Program.

Lack of aid from the government may push companies into bankruptcy and increase unemployment rates, macroeconomic influencers share their views on the Covid -19 impact.

Prof. Steve Hanke, economist at Johns Hopkins University, shared an article on an expected surge in bankruptcy cases in the US due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Decline in consumer demand, social distancing rules and lack of government support is hurting the operations of small and medium businesses.

More than 3,400 companies filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection during the first half of the year, with economists warning of more to come once the federal Paycheck Protection Program aid ends.

A Goldman Sachs survey among more than 1,100 businesses has found that 84% of them will not have sufficient cash flow to keep operations going.

Meanwhile, Heather Long, economics correspondent at Washington Post, tweeted about unemployment statistics in the US.

She added that 1.4 million new unemployment aid applications were filed during the last week of July, which is an increase of 109,000 from the previous week.

Long noted the surge in the number of unemployment applications filed is an indication that layoffs are on the rise.

Read more

2:05 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 15.26 million – five day new case averages for Argentina and Colombia increasing

23 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 15,256,000 with more than 624,000 deaths and 8,670,000 recoveries

Central and South America remain an epicenter for Covid-19.

However, the five day average of new confirmed Covid-19 cases in Brazil, Mexico and Chile has decreased.

The five day average of new confirmed Covid-19 cases in Colombia and Argentina, on the other hand, has increased.

Pakistan is ranked eleventh globally for number of confirmed Covid-19 cases, reporting over 269,000 confirmed cases.

However, the five day average of new confirmed Covid-19 cases in Pakistan has decreased.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology at GlobalData

9:53 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 15.2 million – Hong Kong facing third wave of infections – Kashmir introduces strict lockdown

23 July

Global: The number of coronavirus cases worldwide passed 15.2 million on Thursday, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, which relies on official government data. Known coronavirus deaths number 623,507.

US: The state of California recorded its highest number of new cases in a single day, as the state surpasses New York for the greatest total of cases in the country.

South America: Brazil and Argentina have both registered new daily records for confirmed coronavirus cases. Brazil confirmed 67,860 cases on Wednesday, while Argentina recorded 5,782 cases. Both countries also reported more deaths from the disease, while Peru added 3,688 previously uncounted people to its death toll lifting the total to 17,455.

South Africa: South Africa on Wednesday announced a record 24-hour increase of 572 coronavirus deaths, bringing its total number of fatalities to 5,940, AFP reports. The country is the worst-affected in Africa and among the top five in the world in terms of confirmed cases, with 394,948 infections reported to date.

Australia: Victorian state premier Daniel Andrews says the state has recorded 403 new cases overnight and five new deaths. The cases figure is down from yesterday’s record increase of 484.

China: China’s National Health Commission has reported 22 new cases of coronavirus on the mainland, most of them in the far western region of Xinjiang where mass testing is underway.

Three cases linked to a seafood processing plant have emerged in Dalian, China, weeks after traces of the virus were found on shrimp packaging in the city. The local government has quarantined and tested employees from two related companies amid concern about virus transmission on food packages.

Hong Kong reported a record 113 new cases for Wednesday, in a continuing third wave of Covid-19 infections, including a large proportion of which are unsourced. In addition, Hong Kong’s government issued a statement on Wednesday correcting the number of imported cases to 11 from eight, making the number of local infections 102 rather than 105.

Papua New Guinea: Papua New Guinea has called on the WHO for help citing a “high likelihood of expanded community transmission”.

Japan: Around 360 new coronavirus cases were found in Tokyo on Thursday, a record for a day, TV Asahi and other Japanese media reported, as a long holiday weekend began in Japan.

Vaccine News

China: China will offer a $1 billion loan to make any coronavirus vaccine it develops available to countries across Latin America and the Caribbean.

Lockdown Updates

Kashmir: Indian-administered Kashmir imposed a strict lockdown for a week, as authorities warned of rising coronavirus cases, one day after cancelling a major annual Hindu pilgrimage.

Israel: Israel’s parliament approved a bill that allows the cabinet to declare a state of emergency and impose new restrictions with little to no parliamentary supervision.

Philippines: The Philippines is suspending a decision to allow non-essential overseas travel after just one company agreed to provide health insurance to outbound passengers. The country had 72,269 virus cases, including 1,843 deaths, as of Wednesday.

Economy Updates

Global: The United Nations Development Programme proposed the immediate introduction of a temporary basic income that could stem the spread of the virus by allowing the world’s poorest people to stay at home.

South Korea: South Korea’s economy recorded its worst performance in more than 20 years in the second quarter, the central bank said Thursday, as the coronavirus pandemic hammered its exports.

US: The New York state legislature on Wednesday passed the Healthy Terminals Act, requiring employers at the largest airports in the state to provide additional wages that can be used to acquire health insurance.

China: Cathay Pacific Airways received another blow as Hong Kong unveiled a policy that threatens to eliminate nearly all travel from the US.

9:08 am

Coronavirus company news summary – RAF delivers field hospital to West Africa

23 July

The Royal Air Force (RAF) has completed the delivery of a field hospital to Accra, Ghana. An RAF C-17 transport aircraft carried around 130 metric tonnes of material required for the construction of the UK aid-funded field hospital. The nearly 130ft field hospital will have the capacity to care for up to 92 people. It will be used for frontline aid workers in the region. The delivery was carried out in coordination with Nato’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC). The flights were funded by the Department For International Development in response to a request by the United Nations (UN).

Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR) has evaluated the potential application of a new wireless tracking technology known as Testbed for “Internet of Things” (IOT)-based Privacy-Preserving PERvasive Spaces (TIPPERS) to Covid-19 mitigation. The technology has been developed by the Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Pacific and funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). During testing, the system exhibited capability to “correlate and display tracking data in near-real-time, exhibiting its potential for use in Covid-19 quarantine zone verification” and “proximity detection and retroactive contact tracing”.

7:37 am

How removing unemployment benefits could expose more people to Covid-19

23 July

As economies start to reopen, unemployment benefits announced during the start of the pandemic will soon come to an end.

The abrupt ending of these unemployment benefits along with high unemployment rates could further damage economic recovery.

Paul Krugman, Nobel laureate, shared an article on how ending the unemployment benefits scheme in the US may push millions of workers into poverty.

The $600 per week in unemployment benefits helped workers to meet their expenses.

The benefits scheme is scheduled to expire at the end of July, which economists fear will further damage the US economy.

Without these benefits, workers will cut their spending and may even be evicted from their homes.

Additionally, without unemployment benefits, workers will be forced to look for jobs that may expose them to the virus.

Read more

1:32 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 14,974,000 – Eastern Mediterranean region remains a hotspot

22 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 14,974,000 with over 617,000 deaths and more than 8,486,000 recoveries

The Eastern Mediterranean region remains a hotspot for Covid-19 with four countries- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar- reporting more than 100 daily cases per million population.

Saudi Arabia is ranked number eleven globally in terms of total daily incident cases.

Bangladesh has reported over 213,000 confirmed Covid-19 cases and is ranked number nine in active cases globally out of countries that report this statistic.

The number of new confirmed cases reported yesterday in Bangladesh was over 2,900, a 16% increase in new cases from the day prior.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology at GlobalData

10:20 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases near 15 million – concerns over US reporting – Europe could approve first vaccine this year

22 July

Global: The number of coronavirus cases worldwide passed 14.9 million on Wednesday, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, which relies on official government data. Known coronavirus deaths number 616,764.

US: California on Tuesday became the second US state after New York to report more than 400,000 Covid-19 cases, according to a Reuters tally of county data. Reuters reports that California has a total of 400,166 Covid-19 cases.

The United States is failing to report vital information on Covid-19. The data would help authorities track the spread of the disease and prevent the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans, according to the first comprehensive review of the nation’s coronavirus data.

President Donald Trump rebooted his coronavirus briefings with a warning about a surge in US cases even as he sought to reassure Americans that his administration has the crisis under control.

A new study by the University of Nebraska suggests that Covid-19 can spread through normal speaking and breathing, and travel further than two metres, according to a report by AFP.

Brazil: Brazil has confirmed 41,008 more cases in the past 24 hours, as well as 1,367 related deaths, the country’s health ministry has said.

India: India reported 648 new deaths on Wednesday to take its total to 28,732, passing Spain to rank seventh globally in deaths, according to data compiled by John Hopkins University. The country already ranks third in the number of infections.

Mexico: Mexico reported 6,859 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the total to 356,255, according to data released by the Health Ministry Tuesday night. Deaths rose 915 to 40,400.

Australia: The state of Victoria reported the highest-ever one-day new case total for an Australian state, with 484 in a single day. The rise is higher than Australia’s previous record one-day total, which means Wednesday also marked Australia’s highest cases over the course of the pandemic so far.

China: China has reported 14 new cases of coronavirus, five of them imported and the rest in the far western region of Xinjiang. There have been no new cases of community transmission in Beijing for 16 days, according to state media.

South Korea: South Korea reported 63 more Covid-19 cases in 24 hours, raising the total tally to 13,879, according to data from the Korea Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.

Vaccine News

Europe: European regulators could approve the first vaccine against Covid-19 this year, after a flurry of trials by drugmakers leading the race showed promising results.

Lockdown updates

Zimbabwe: President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Tuesday imposed a curfew and reinstated strict measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus following a spike in cases in recent weeks. The number of cases recorded in the country rose by nearly a third over the past week to a total 1,713 cases. The number of deaths climbed from 18 to 26.

Qatar: Qatar is relaxing its coronavirus travel restrictions from the beginning of next month. From 1 August, citizens and permanent residents will be allowed to travel overseas and return, while residents will be allowed to return.

Indonesia: Two out of three Indonesians oppose continuing strict social-distancing orders, according to a survey. The government should prioritize efforts to revive the economy rather than tackling virus spread, a majority of participants told pollster Indikator Politik Indonesia.

Japan: Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike told residents to avoid unnecessary trips outdoors during an upcoming four-day weekend, as the total number of coronavirus cases in the city topped 10,000. The capital had another 230 or more cases Wednesday, Koike said earlier.

Singapore: Singapore is preparing for the resumption of business events such as meetings, conventions, exhibitions and trade shows as economic activities restart, according to a statement by the Singapore Tourism Board.

Austria: Austria is again tightening measures against the virus, dialling back part of its easing in the past few weeks as new infections have surged in various clusters.

Economy updates

Europe: The euro hit an 18-month high and stock markets gained ground after the EU agreed on a €750bn pandemic recovery fund, in a deal closely following reports that a coronavirus vaccine could be ready within months.

US: Senate Republicans are considering whether to cut the unemployment insurance subsidy to 70% of the $600 weekly addition to state-run unemployment programs provided by the last round of economic aid, or pushing for 70-75% of prior wage replacement, a smaller benefit.

China: Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. said it reached an agreement with Airbus SE to defer aircraft deliveries as part of its move to preserve cash amid slowing business due to the coronavirus pandemic.

9:36 am

Coronavirus company news summary – Leonardo donates $80,000 to American Red Cross – USAF awards BlackSky Covid-19 monitoring contract

22 July

Leonardo DRS is donating $80,000 to support the relief delivered to the citizens during the Covid-19 pandemic. Out of the total funding, the company offered $50,000 and its employees raised the remaining $30,000 amount. Leonardo DRS has selected the American Red Cross to receive the funds.

The US Air Force (USAF) has awarded a monitoring contract to BlackSky to track the efficacy of global Covid-19 mitigation efforts. Under the contract, the company will leverage its Spectra artificial intelligence and machine learning platform for near-real-time examination of the evolving pandemic. Spectra will use advanced image exploitation techniques to automatically study anomalies and monitor social distancing application. This will provide crucial information to decision-makers to ensure the protection of deployed USAF personnel around the globe.

Just – Evotec Biologics has been contracted by the US Department of Defense (DOD) to produce monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to treat and/or prevent Covid-19. The $18.2m contract will see the company leverage its experience in process development and clinical manufacturing to rapidly deliver two monoclonal antibodies directed against SARS-CoV-2 antigens. This effort is being executed by the DOD’s Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND).

8:28 am

Covid-19 driven GDP contractions projected for US and Eurozone

22 July

The US GDP is projected to contract by 6% due to the economic downturn caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Foreign direct investment inflows from the US into China continue to rise despite these projections.

Robin Brooks, chief economist at Institute of International Finance, shared a chart on the expected GDP contraction in the US by 6%.

He added that the Eurozone GDP is expected to contract by 9%.

Brooks noted that a larger output gap and deflationary momentum is expected in the Euro zone as a result of the GDP contraction.

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9:43 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 14.7 million – Brazil to commence mass testing of vaccine

21 July

Global: Global Coronavirus cases have reached 14,707,451 while deaths have increased to 609,986 according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.

US: Coronavirus cases in the US increased to more than 3.8 million, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University. Deaths rose 0.2% to 140,909.

The US will have to come up with alternative ways to detect Covid-19 infections as the current swab testing capacity won’t be able to meet demand during the fall flu season, the Financial Times reported, citing Quest Diagnostics Inc.

South Africa: WHO warned that South Africa’s growing numbers could be a “precursor” for outbreaks elsewhere on the continent. South Africa has 373,000 cases – around half the continent’s cases. By comparison, numbers in Kenya had increased by 31%, Madagascar by 50%, Zambia by 57% and Namibia by 69%.

Brazil: Brazil’s health ministry has reported the country’s death toll has passed 80,000 and the number of cases is now 2.1 million. It comes as two more Brazilian government ministers said on Monday they had tested positive for Covid-19.

Mexico: Mexico’s health ministry on Monday reported 5,172 new confirmed coronavirus infections and 301 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 349,396 cases and 39,485 deaths.

Australia: Australia’s southern state of Victoria reported 374 new coronavirus cases. The state has introduced mandatory face coverings from 11.59pm on Wednesday.

New Zealand: New Zealand reported one new case of Covid-19 in a returned traveller. The woman in her 30s arrived in the country on 16 July from London via Doha and Sydney. She has been transferred to an Auckland quarantine facility.

Japan: The organisers of the Tokyo Olympic Games are preparing a day of celebrations to mark a year to the start of the event, which is now due to be held in July 2021 after a year-long delay because of the coronavirus. In addition, the city reported 237 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, in comparison to 168 reported cases on Monday.

South Korea: South Korea has reported 45 new cases of coronavirus. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 20 of the cases were locally acquired, and nine of them came from a nursing home in western Seoul.

China: China is providing free Covid-19 tests to residents of Urumqi in the far western region of Xinjiang after a sudden spike in coronavirus cases there, according to state media. The testing is designed to “effectively lower the risk of the virus spreading,” the Global Times reported the city’s anti-epidemic group as saying.

All air travellers to China are required to provide results of coronavirus tests conducted within five days of their departure, according to a joint government statement on the Civil Aviation Administration website.

Vaccine News

Brazil: Brazil is to start mass testing of a vaccine developed by China’s Sinovac on medical workers from six states, starting at the Clinical Hospital of Sao Paolo.

Lockdown updates

US Governor Andrew Cuomo threatened to close down all New York bars and restaurants if large street gatherings continue and his social distance and mask regulations aren’t enforced.

Philippines: President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the police to intensify arrests and detentions of those who violate government rules on wearing masks and social distancing, as coronavirus cases continue to surge.

Economy updates

Europe: Europe agrees on Covid-19 recovery plan. European council president Charles Michel said the agreement was a “pivotal moment” as heads of state finally thrashed out a deal on day five of their summit. It set out a €750bn pandemic recovery fund and long-term spending plans.

UK: Government borrowing soared to almost £130 billion ($165 billion) in the first three months of the fiscal year amid the towering cost of supporting the economy through the coronavirus crisis. The Office for National Statistics said Tuesday that the budget deficit stood at £35.5 billion in June alone, leaving debt at almost 100% of GDP.

Australia: Prime minister, Scott Morrison, has extended Covid-19 job support payments but reduced the size of the payments.

9:06 am

Coronavirus company news summary – DARPA awards Covid-19 machine learning contract

21 July

The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded a contract to Duality Technologies to develop a privacy-preserving Machine Learning (ML) capability for Covid-19 research. The development is based on a privacy-enhancing technology, Homomorphic Encryption (HE). The new machine learning capability will run on encrypted data and enable researchers to build predictive models by gathering sensitive clinical and genomic data from several healthcare institutions. Duality has partnered with Harvard Medical School and Two Six Labs to support Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) related to Covid-19 research.

US Air Force (USAF) airmen at Travis Air Force Base (AFB) in California have successfully conducted the first Indo-Pacific aeromedical evacuation mission. It represented USAF’s first Transport Isolation System (TIS) mission in support of the US Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility. A Covid-19 patient from the Indo-Pacific region was transported to get medical care at David Grant USAF Medical Center on Travis AFB. The patient was an active-duty service member. The airlift support was conducted by the 775th Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Flight using 21st Airlift Squadron’s C-17 Globemaster III aircraft. The C-130H Hercules, the C-130J Super Hercules and the C-17 aircraft are currently capable of carrying the TIS capsules.

North Carolina Army National Guard’s 449th Theater Aviation Brigade is working with state agencies and local food banks to help feed citizens during Covid-19. Guardsmen assigned to the 2-130th Airfield Operations Battalion and the 1-130th Attack Reconnaissance Battalion worked together in supporting the initiative. Guardsmen along with volunteers from veteran disaster relief service organisation Team Rubicon, non-profit organisation Action Pathways and the Second Harvest Food Bank Southeast distributed meals and fresh produce.

7:30 am

Failure of US lockdowns could lead to double dip recession – offshore financial centres have drained resources needed to fight pandemic

21 July

Strict lockdown measures may be needed to control the surge in cases in the US as the country faces the risk of a double dip recession.

Rafael Domenech, head of economic analysis at BBVA Research, shared an article on how a surge in Covid-19 cases may lead to a double dip recession in the US.

Additional federal funding, severe lockdowns and increased spending on Covid-19 testing may be needed to address the surge in cases.

Compared to other countries, lockdowns in the US have not been effective in controlling the surge in cases posing a threat to economic recovery.

Further, the delay in testing with a seven day wait for results is proving ineffective in curbing the spread of infections.

A double-dip recession maybe the worst case scenario if the virus is not brought under control.

In other news, as macroeconomic influencers share their views on the Covid -19 impact, offshore financial centres (OFCs) have contributed to financial instability and drained countries of the resources needed to fight crises such as the pandemic.

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2:12 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: US Covid-19 cases approaching 4 million – infections in India pass 1 million

20 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 14,508,000 with more than 606,000 deaths and 8,134,000 recoveries

The United States remains number one for the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases globally with over 3,773,000 confirmed cases.

The top five states with the highest total number of cases per million population are New York, California, Florida, Texas and New Jersey.

The top five states with the highest number of deaths per million population are New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, California and Illinois.

India now has over one million confirmed Covid-19 cases, the third highest globally.

Russia has the fourth highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases globally with over 770,000 confirmed cases. However, the five day average for new confirmed Covid-19 cases has decreased.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology at GlobalData

9:32 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 14.5 million – Trump seeks to block funds for testing and tracing as infections soar in US

20 July

Global: More than 14.5 million people have been tested positive for coronavirus worldwide so far, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, which relies on official government data. The current total stands at 14,508,892. The death toll is 606,195.

US: Donald Trump is seeking to block billions of dollars in funding for coronavirus testing and contact tracing efforts as cases soar across the US, where around 70,000 people are testing positive each day.

Some of the NFL’s biggest names took to social media on Sunday to express their concerns and anger over the lack of Covid-19 safety protocols as teams prepare to open training camps this week.

Brazil: Brazil reported 23,529 new cases and 716 deaths, both declines from the day before. The Latin American nation, with the second-worst outbreak after the U.S., now has almost 2.1 million cases and 79,488 deaths.

Mexico: Mexico’s health ministry reported 5,311 new confirmed coronavirus infections and 296 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 344,224 cases and 39,184 deaths, according to Reuters early on Monday.

China: China reported 22 new coronavirus cases, according to the People’s Daily, with 17 of these community transmission cases from Xinjiang. China launched mass health screenings in the western Xinjiang province late last week after a spike in cases raised fears of a fresh outbreak.

A record 100 new cases were confirmed in Hong Kong, the territory’s leader said on Sunday, as she tightened social distancing measures, including mandating the wearing of masks in public indoor spaces, to tackle the sudden rise in the number of infections.

South Africa: South Africa registered 85 new deaths from the virus in the previous 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 5,033. A total of 13,449 new infections were also officially diagnosed, taking the number to 364,328, figures released by the health ministry showed.

Melanesia: Papua New Guinea recorded its first Covid-19-related death – the first Pacific island fatality outside US territories and the first in Melanesia – as it seeks to contain an outbreak in the main hospital in its capital, Port Moresby.

Cyprus: Health minister Constantinos Ioannou says there’s concern that coronavirus-infected migrants could be seeping through the ethnically divided island nation’s porous ceasefire line, the Associated Press news agency reported.

South Korea: Imported coronavirus cases continue to rise by double-digit figures, according to the latest figures on Monday. The country identified 26 new cases, raising the total caseload to 13,771, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). Of the newly added cases, just four were local infections, and 22 were imported.

Vaccine News

UK: The UK said it has secured early access to 90 million doses of “promising” coronavirus vaccine candidates, according to a statement.

Russia: Scores of members of Russia’s business and political elite have been given early access to an experimental vaccine against Covid-19, according to people familiar with the effort, as the country races to be among the first to develop an inoculation.

Lockdown updates

China: Global banks, including Citigroup Inc. and UBS Group AG, are suspending their return-to-office plans in Hong Kong after the city reported a daily record of more than 100 new coronavirus cases.

Italy: Rome and its surroundings could go under lockdown again, a regional health commissioner warned, after 17 new cases were reported, including ten from other countries, according to the Associated Press reported.

UK: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has insisted he can avoid imposing another England-wide lockdown this winter, describing it as a “nuclear deterrent” that he hopes never to use.

Luxembourg: Prime Minister Xavier Bettel said he would impose new restrictions after an emergency meeting on rising cases, saying the nation is not respecting measures to curb Covid-19.

Australia: Authorities in Australia are stepping up their battle against coronavirus with the second biggest city of Melbourne announcing the introduction of mandatory face coverings from Wednesday when leaving the house.

France: France will issue €135 fines to people flouting new mask rules. The French government has announced that it will fine people who flout its decree to wear a mask in indoor public spaces.

Thailand: A meeting led by Thailand Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha on Monday will discuss the possible extension of emergency rules beyond the end of the month, as well as the next stage of easing, said Somsak Rungsita, secretary-general of the National Security Council.

Economy updates

EU: The four European Union governments that have been holding up negotiations over a massive stimulus package to reboot the bloc’s economy are ready to agree on a key plank of the deal, two officials said.

Sudan: The United Nations has made an urgent appeal for $283m to help Sudan tackle the coronavirus pandemic and its economic consequences, as millions in the country face hunger.

Japan: Most people in Japan are against government plans to kickstart domestic tourism with a subsidised campaign, according to newspaper surveys published on Monday, as fears grow over the number of new coronavirus cases, particularly in Tokyo, according to Reuters news agency.

Salvador: President Nayib Bukele has announced that he will postpone the second phase of the country’s economic reopening, slated to begin Tuesday, after evaluating inputs from experts and the health ministry, Reuters news agency reported.

8:14 am

Education may face funding shortfalls due to Covid-19 pandemic

20 July

State and local governments are expected to face budget shortfalls due to rising healthcare costs and widespread unemployment rates due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Governments may soon be forced to consider cutting spending allocations in other areas, such as education.

Macroeconomic influencers share their views on the Covid -19 impact.

Konstantina Beleli, an economist, shared an article on how the Covid-19 pandemic may impact government budgets at the state and local levels.

The article notes that government may be forced to cut budget allocations to areas such as education and infrastructure.

Lockdown measures and social distancing have led sharp decline in sales taxes, which is one of the biggest source of revenue for state governments.

The pandemic is expected to result in a budget shortfall of $650bn over the next three years, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP).

Education and infrastructure investments are expected to the worst affected due to the shortfall.

In other news, US Federal Reserve measures to support companies through the Covid-19 pandemic are drawing criticism, according to Edward Harrison, a banking and finance specialist.

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1:50 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Covid-19 infections climbing rapidly in Peru and South Africa – global deaths near 591,000

17 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have exceeded 13.8 million with over 590,000 deaths and 7,735,000 recoveries.

Peru has surpassed Mexico in the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases, and now has the second highest number of confirmed Covid-19 infections in Central and South America behind Brazil.

Central and South America remains an epicenter for Covid-19, with four countries being among the top ten countries with the highest confirmed number of Covid-19 cases.

The number of new confirmed Covid-19 cases in South Africa yesterday was over 12,000.

South Africa has moved up from the eighth highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases globally to the sixth highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases globally.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology  at GlobalData

1:28 pm

How a persistent pandemic and prolonged lockdowns will slow economic recovery

17 July

Macroeconomic influencers tracked by GlobalData share their views on Chinese Q2 gross domestic product (GDP), rising unemployment in Australia and the UK threatening recovery, and how Covid-19 remains to be the biggest risk to the global economy.

Stephen Tapp, Deputy Chief Economist and Trade Research Director at Export Development Canada (EDC) tweeted that a prolonged Covid-19 pandemic is the biggest among the top ten risks facing Canadian businesses in 2020.

US-China trade war, global protectionism, and increasing government and corporate debt are among other significant risks EDC has identified.

Covid-19 has inflated the majority of the other business risks facing Canada, adds EDC which suggests Canadian exporters be wary of default risks in emerging markets, especially those already reeling under massive debts.

In other news, lockdowns to fight the second wave of coronavirus infections will be detrimental to economic recovery, opines Ludovic Subran, Chief economist at insurance and asset management services provider Allianz.

Subran expects global gross domestic product (GDP) to fall by 4.7% during the year, but to grow by 4.8% in 2021.

Stimulus measures, both fiscal and monetary, announced so far exceed 1.3 times Chinese GDP, at $1.8t.

In its latest economic outlook, Allianz doesn’t expect global trade to return to pre-Covid levels before 2023 and anticipates the subdued capacity utilisation situation to persist until Q4 this year.

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9:50 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 infections pass 13.8 million – record daily rise in US – Trump pushes to re-open schools

17 July

Global: There are 13,810,534 known coronavirus cases worldwide. The number of deaths stands at 590,005, according to Johns Hopkins University’s tracker.

Coronavirus support to poor countries has been so far “grossly inadequate and that’s dangerously short-sighted”, UN aid chief Mark Lowcock said, as he asked wealthy countries for billions of more dollars in assistance.

US: The US reported 68,428 new infections in the past 24 hours, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University, setting yet another record for a single-day rise in coronavirus cases.

An official with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the most recent count shows 342 US children and teens have developed a serious inflammatory condition linked to Covid-19 infections.

Australia: The state of Victoria reported a record 428 new cases, ten days into the lockdown of Melbourne. The neighbouring state of New South Wales tightened restrictions on pubs, restaurants and gatherings, as it reported eight new cases, six of which were from community transmission.

Brazil: Brazil has passed the two million confirmed coronavirus cases mark, with little sign that the rate of increase is slowing as anger grows over President Jair Bolsonaro’s handling of the outbreak.

China: Hong Kong’s coronavirus outbreak is expected on Friday to surpass the magnitude of its earlier waves of infections, in a cautionary tale that the worst may be yet to come in the pandemic.

Urumqi, the capital of China’s far western region of Xinjiang, cancelled hundreds of flights on Friday after the report of its first coronavirus case in about five months fuelled concerns of a potential new outbreak.

South Korea: South Korea reported 60 more coronavirus cases in 24 hours, raising the total tally to 13,672, according to data from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

UK: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is to invest £3bn ($3.77bn) into England’s National Health Service (NHS) to try to ward off any resurgence of the coronavirus.

Vaccine News

India: Researchers from the Indian government have been given the green light to study the century-old BCG vaccine’s ability to prevent the severe incidence of Covid-19 in the high-risk elderly population.

Johnson & Johnson is in discussions with multiple countries and a charitable foundation to determine how much of its experimental coronavirus vaccine will be needed. Chief financial officer Joseph Wolk said they are in talks with the European Union, Japan and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

UK: The UK has accused Russian state intelligence of hacking international pharmaceutical and academic research in a bid to win the race to secure a vaccine against Covid-19. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said vaccine and therapeutic sectors in multiple countries have been targeted, declining to list the names and number of institutions affected on security grounds.

Lockdown updates

US: Anthony Fauci said many states rushed too quickly to reopen without bringing the virus adequately under control, leading to the resurgence in states across the U.S. south and west.

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said: ‘The science should not stand in the way’ of reopening schools. She defended President Trump’s push to reopen schools, despite concerns about the spread of coronavirus in the classroom. “And when he says open, he means open and full, kids being able to attend each and every day at their school,” McEnany noted during her White House briefing.

A new report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says President Trump’s European travel ban was enacted too late to protect New York residents. “Although travel restrictions are an important mitigation strategy, by the time the European restrictions were implemented, importation and community transmission of Sars-CoV-2 had already occurred in NYC,” the report said.

US Democrats have urged elected leaders and party delegates to skip the national convention in August as coronavirus cases surge, the New York Times reported, in what the paper says is “a sign of the ever-shrinking aspirations for their big campaign event in the face of the spreading virus”.

New York City will not open malls and museums on Monday even if the city is allowed to move into the next phase of reopening, Governor Andrew Cuomo said, promising more crackdowns on bars and restaurants.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended a ban on cruise ships through the end of September as coronavirus infections rose across the country, including in the state of Florida.

Mexico: Authorities imposed local restrictions on mobility, commerce, and leisure, particularly in popular tourist destinations, even as the government seeks to revive the battered economy. The country has 317,635 Covid-19 cases and 37,574 deaths.

Spain: Officials said on Thursday that residents in three districts in the Barcelona suburb of L’Hospitalet de Llobregat must stay indoors amid a resurgence in cases. Wednesday saw residents told to stay at home in an area in and around the north-eastern city of Lerida, a measure affecting around 160,000 people. They are allowed to leave to go to work, buy food or medication, or to exercise.

Colombia: Doctors are calling for a return to a strict city-wide quarantine to slow coronavirus infections in the capital, warning that medical services are close to collapsing. The country has reported over 165,000 cases of the coronavirus and around 6,000 deaths.

Denmark: Denmark’s foreign ministry has updated its travel guidelines in response to its latest assessment of the risks posed by Covid-19. The new list includes an easing of guidelines for several regions in Sweden, namely Halland, Kalmar and Värmland.

Israel: The government imposed a new weekend shutdown on Friday and tightened a series of coronavirus curbs to lower infection rates, amid growing public anger over the government’s handling of the crisis, Reuters reports.

India: New restrictions have been introduced in the western city of Pune and other states, including Uttar Pradesh, home to 200 million people, as well as badly hit Tamil Nadu and Assam. The northern Indian state of Bihar, with a population of around 125 million people, started a 15-day lockdown from 16 July.

Indonesia: Indonesia’s capital city Jakarta will remain under social-distancing measures for two more weeks after new coronavirus cases surged since the easing of a partial lockdown a month ago.

Puerto Rico: The governor has announced major rollbacks including the closure of bars, gyms, marinas, theatres and casinos and restricted the use of beaches as the US territory is hit by a spike in Covid-19 cases in recent weeks.

Economy updates

Japan: Japan’s agriculture ministry has decided to suspend bids seeking contractors for its “Go To Eat” campaign aimed at supporting eating establishments hit by the coronavirus outbreak, Jiji reports without attribution.

Canada: Canada’s federal government will give the 13 provinces and territories more than C$19bn ($14bn) to help pay for the costs of restarting the economy after several months of Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.

9:22 am

Coronavirus company news summary – China donates supplies to Serbia – Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) develops Covid tracking dashboard

17 July

The US Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) has opened for field training at Maxwell Air Force Base (AFB) in Alabama this summer. About 1,152 cadets are attending the training that is held annually. It is an assessment tool considered essential by Air Education and Training Command to help assess a cadet’s overall development in becoming a commissioned officer. Cadets will be put through three training cycles MAX A, B and C. the last cycle will end on 20 August.

China has donated Covid-19 related medical devices to Serbia military health system to support their fight against the pandemic. Serbian Defence Minister Aleksandar Vulin took delivery of the equipment. According to a press release issued by the Serbian Government, the donation included 40 non-invasive ventilators, 20 vital signs monitors, 30 infusion pumps, five portable infrared thermometers and six thermal imaging helmets. It is said that the aid is worth nearly $8,59,400. Currently, the Serbian Army is constructing mobile and temporary hospitals.

Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) students have developed a new dashboard that will help in tracking Covid-19 cases. Known as COVID-19 Health Assessment Dashboard (CHAD), the predictive modelling app provides updated pandemic information and situational awareness to AF leadership specific to military installations and the surrounding local areas. It has been developed after AF requested Covid-19 analysis support from AFIT. CHAD gathers real-time data for hospitals, cases, and deaths, as well as provides charts, maps, and tables with the information of interest.

2:10 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases approach 13.6 million – India records more than 32,000 infections in a day

16 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 13,578,000 with over 584,000 deaths and 7,597,000 recoveries.

India and Russia have the third and fourth highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases globally, behind the United States and Brazil.

The number of new confirmed cases yesterday in India was over 32,000 and the number of new confirmed cases in Russia was over 6,400.

Iran has the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the Middle East and the tenth highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases globally.

The death toll has increased from the previous few days with over 199 deaths so far today.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology at GlobalData

11:34 am

Economic crisis looms for US due to Covid-19 driven unemployment

16 July

Economic crisis looms in the US, the UK is set to suffer a major GDP decline, and the Eurozone recovery will be impacted by the end of subsidised jobless schemes.

Macroeconomic influencers tracked by GlobalData share the latest updates on the Covid-19 impact on global economies.

Claudia Sahm, a policy analyst, opines that the US government must continue Covid relief measures to the unemployed until they find work and adds that jobless benefits must be enhanced.

Sahm also says that funding for the CARES Act needs to be increased three-fold because economic crisis looms in the US, causing income loss to 40% of American families, some 20% of which have lost the major income earner due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Read more

9:34 am

Coronavirus company news summary – US National Guard continue Covid-19 support – Joint Base San Antonio airshow cancelled

16 July

Indiana National Guard medical personnel are supporting state-wide Covid-19 testing. Over 47,000 employees at 520 long-term care facilities are being tested with an aim to reduce asymptomatic viral spread. The guard are assisting OptumServe under an initiative by the Indiana State Department of Health. Kansas National Guard are helping in packing boxes of food for distribution to the communities. The members are working to reach five million meals mark. Meanwhile, North Carolina Army National Guard’s 449th Theater Aviation Brigade is helping distribute meals and fresh produce to about 250 families at the Midway Elementary School in Dunn.

Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA) has cancelled 2020 airshow scheduled for November this year as part of efforts to curb the spread of Covid-19 pandemic. The next airshow will be held together with the US Air Force’s 75th anniversary from 23-24 April 2022 at JBSA-Randolph. JBSA and 502nd Air Base Wing commander brigadier general Caroline Miller said: “I know this is disappointing, but this decision was made with the health and safety of the JBSA members and surrounding communities in mind.”

The US Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) is supporting the department’s employees to continue to operate in a telework environment. The agency and Joint Force Headquarters Department of Defense Information Networks have helped increase networking capacity such as new circuits, increased bandwidth and increased conference call lines to keep the department working since the pandemic started. The Army’s virtual private network access and reliability has been raised by nearly 300% while increased VPN access by more than 1,000% to about 122,000 telework connections per day. DISA is considering maintaining these increased capabilities even after the crisis subsides.

8:58 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 infections pass 13.5 million – US nears 3.5 million cases – rapid rise continues in Brazil

16 July

Global: More than 13.5 million people around the world have now been confirmed to have had the coronavirus, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. US has 3,499,291 cases while Brazil is rapidly approaching 2 million with 1,966,748 cases.

Overall mortality of Covid-19 patients treated in intensive-care units fell to just under 42% at the end of May from almost 60% in March, according to the first systematic analysis of two dozen studies involving more than 10,000 patients in Asia, Europe and North America.

US: California reported a record 11,000 daily cases. California recorded its largest number of coronavirus infections in a single day on Tuesday, amid efforts to halt reopening statewide.

Brazil: President, Jair Bolsonaro, has again tested positive for Covid-19, he told reporters on Wednesday in Brasilia, suggesting he has yet to recover from an infection first diagnosed last week, Reuters reports.

Japan: Tokyo is likely to see coronavirus cases exceed 280 on Thursday – a daily record for the Japanese capital – according to the governor, Yuriko Koike.

Australia: The state of Victoria reported two more deaths and 317 cases on Thursday, the largest daily increase in cases for an Australian state since the start of the pandemic.

Canada: Canada’s efforts to flatten the curve have put the country on the brink of zero deaths for the first time since March, but officials see worrying signs of a new spike as provinces lift restrictions.

South Africa: South Africa surpassed 300,000 confirmed coronavirus cases late on Wednesday. The country’s 311,049 cases make up close to half of Africa’s total.

Vaccine News

Global: Eight world leaders, including President Sahle-Work Zewde of Ethiopia and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, issued a call for “global solidarity” for fairness in distributing any Covid-19 vaccine that may be developed.

US: Dr Anthony Fauci predicted on Wednesday the country would meet its goal of a vaccine by year’s end, he told Reuters in an interview, saying, “I feel good about the projected timetable.” Fauci’s comments came as US cases increased by a world daily record of more than 67,400, taking the total to nearly 3.5 million confirmed infections.

Lockdown updates

Ireland: Prime minister, Micheal Martin, said on Wednesday night the government continues to advise against non-essential overseas travel, as he announced that a planned move to “phase 4 reopening” had been postponed to 10 August because the country’s reproduction rate – the number of people infected by a virus carrier – had increased to more than 1.

Japan: Officials in Japan are questioning the government’s plans to boost domestic tourism amid a surge in coronavirus cases in the capital.

Spain: authorities on the island of Majorca have ordered bars on popular party streets in Magaluf and Palma to close, for fear that hard-drinking tourists will trigger a surge in coronavirus cases.

Canada: Air Canada tried to persuade the government of Justin Trudeau to ease restrictions on travel, pointing to policy shifts in other nations where the Covid-19 pandemic has shown signs of improvement.

Indonesia: the government plans to fine violators of social distancing rules under a new law as President Joko Widodo steps up efforts to contain the biggest outbreak of coronavirus in Southeast Asia.

Economy updates

China: China’s economy returned to growth in the second quarter, rebounding more strongly than expected from a historic contraction caused by the coronavirus outbreak, official data showed Thursday. Gross domestic product expanded a surprise 3.2% in April-June, the National Bureau of Statistics said.

1:06 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 deaths approach 580,000 – South Africa, US, Brazil and India report highest infection rises

15 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 13,324,000 with over 579,000 deaths and 7,399,000 recoveries

Countries in Central and South America continue to represent four out of the top ten countries with the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases.

Brazil and Mexico still hold the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the region, although the five day average of confirmed Covid-19 cases has decreased.

Meanwhile, the five day average of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Colombia and Peru has increased.

South Africa has the highest number of cases in Africa as well as the eighth highest number of cases globally, and is alongside the US, Brazil and India in reporting the biggest rise of recent Covid-19 cases.

Isobel Lloyd, BSc and Kasey Fu, MPH, Director of Epidemiology at GlobalData

10:48 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 infections pass 13.3 million as cases rise by 200,000 a day – encouraging results as vaccine nears final testing

15 July

Global: Global cases have passed 13.3 million, as cases continue to rise by around 200,000 every 24 hours. There have been 578,628 deaths so far, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker.

The blood from seriously ill coronavirus patients on ventilators was found by researchers to be highly inflammatory and harmful to the body, the South China Morning Post reported on Wednesday, citing a study by Dutch scientists.

Japan: Tokyo is considering raising its alert for coronavirus infections to the highest of four levels, officials said on Wednesday, after a spike in cases to record numbers in the city.

Australia: The state of Victoria has recorded 238 new cases of Covid-19 and the death of a woman in her 90s and New South Wales has recorded 13 new cases, including ten linked to the Crossroads Hotel cluster in south-west Sydney which has now affected 34 people.

New Zealand: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that New Zealand must prepare for new coronavirus outbreaks as the pandemic spreads globally, but will not drop its elimination strategy if community transmission was discovered.

Germany: The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 351 to 199,726, Reuters reported on Wednesday citing the latest data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases.

China: China’s National Health Commission said Wednesday that it received reports of six new confirmed Covid-19 cases on the Chinese mainland as of the end of Tuesday, and all of them were imported.

Mexico: Mexico’s Health Ministry has reported 7,051 new confirmed coronavirus infections and 836 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 311,486 cases and 36,327 deaths, according to Reuters news agency.

South Korea: South Korea’s new coronavirus cases stayed below 40 for the second day in a row on Wednesday, but imported cases continued to rise, hampering the country’s efforts to contain the disease, according to Yonhap state news agency.

Ghana: More than 300 students and tutors have tested positive for coronavirus at high schools in the West African nation of Ghana, AP news agency reported.

Cyprus: Cyprus is doubling the number of random coronavirus tests that will be carried out on arriving passengers at its two main airports each day, AP news agency reported.

Vaccine News

US: The first Covid-19 vaccine tested in the United States revved up people’s immune systems just the way scientists had hoped, researchers reported – as the shots are poised to begin key final testing.

Lockdown updates

Global: Cities and states around the world returned to tighter coronavirus restrictions to battle recurring outbreaks, including India’s IT hub Bangalore which was set to go into a new week-long lockdown on Tuesday as the number of coronavirus cases surged.

India: 133 million people re-enter lockdown in India as Covid-19 cases top 900,000. Late on Tuesday, India’s coronavirus cases, the third-highest in the world, passed 900,000, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. The current total stands at 906,752, with 23,727 known deaths.

US: President Donald Trump said in an interview on Tuesday that it was a “mistake” for the two largest California school districts, Los Angeles and San Diego, to keep schools closed in the fall.

Venezuela: Venezuela’s capital Caracas will go into a strict lockdown on Wednesday, in a bid to slow its coronavirus outbreak. Much of Venezuela has been shut down since its first case was reported in early March.

France: In France, masks will become mandatory in all enclosed public spaces within the next few weeks, President Emmanuel Macron has said in a major Bastille Day interview. The country is also aiming to reopen all schools for the new academic year under as “normal” conditions as possible.

China: Renewed restrictions took effect in Hong Kong on Wednesday, with restaurants limited to takeout after 6pm, as the Asian financial centre battles a resurgence of the coronavirus, Reuters news agency reported.

9:16 am

Economic stimulus plans could slow post Covid recovery

15 July

Global debt levels have been increasing due to the Covid crisis, with those of the G20 economies expected to grow by 120% more than the level seen post World War II.

Daniel Lacelle, Chief Economist at investment services provider Tressis, tweeted his views on the increasing global debt levels due to Covid-19.

He suggests that an increase in public spending through stimulus plans combined with a fall in output could drive the global debt to approximately 105% of gross domestic product (GDP).

Government and private debt together increased by more than 35% of GDP, much higher than the 20% witnessed following the 2008 crisis.

Lacelle opines that the new debt will not help economic recovery but will result in a prolonged recovery since most of it is meant for a cyclical boom rather than targeting the new crisis caused by Covid-19.

He adds that countries that have not fallen into the massive government spending trap have recovered faster.

Read more

9:15 am

Coronavirus company news summary – 2020 Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana Air Show cancelled – Australia deploys more troops to Victoria

The Australian Government is deploying additional defence personnel to Victoria to support the state’s Covid-19 response efforts. The extra 1,000 Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel will focus on areas such as contact tracing data management and analysis, support supply and logistics, testing in metro, regional/rural and tourist locations, assist in expanding Ambulance Victoria’s response capabilities and more. The deployment will continue over the next four weeks. The existing contingent of more than 400 personnel are expected to remain in the state up to 19 August.

The Ohio Air National Guard’s 178th Wing is supporting drive-thru Covid-19 nasal swab testing of the local community. The guard’s airmen have partnered with the staff of Centerpoint Health at the Community Building Institute in Middletown. They are working together with Ohio Army National Guard medics from the 174th Air Defense Artillery Brigade and the 285th Medical Company. Centerpoint Health personnel are in charge of facilitating the drive-thru testing and checking patients.

The US Navy has cancelled its premier aviation event in North America, the 2020 Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana Air Show, due to Covid-19 pandemic. The annual air show was scheduled to be held from 19 to 20 September this year. NAS Oceana commanding officer captain John Hewitt said: “Unfortunately, the risks associated with large gatherings are too considerable to ensure absolute safety for our guests. While we won’t have the traditional show this year, we hope to still provide a unique experience virtually for our fans and our entire Hampton Roads community.”

1:52 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 13.1 million – infections still on the rise in the Americas

14 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 13,113,000 with over 573,000 deaths and 7,268,000 recoveries.

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases and deaths continues to rise in the US, as it remains the country with the highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases and deaths.

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases and deaths continues to rise in Central and South America, especially in Brazil and Peru.

Both countries are currently included in the top ten countries with highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases and deaths.

The UK has the seventh highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases and the third highest number of Covid-19 deaths.

However, both the number of daily confirmed cases and deaths have been decreasing.

Nanthida Nanthavong, MPH, Epidemiologist at GlobalData

11:07 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 13 million – cities and states returning to tighter restrictions worldwide

14 July

Global: More than 13 million people around the world have now been confirmed to have had the coronavirus, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The five most affected countries include United States (3,361,042), Brazil (884,967), India (878,254), Russia (732,547) and Peru (330,123).

Australia: In the Australian state of Victoria, 270 new cases of the virus were identified overnight. Staff from the private sector including airlines, telecommunications companies and banks, as well as 1,000 additional Australian defence force personnel, will be deployed to help efforts to contain Covid-19 in the state.

UK: Britain must start “intense preparations” for a second wave of coronavirus that has the potential to kill as many as 120,000 hospital patients in a worst-case scenario, experts have warned. In addition, the British government will announce on Tuesday that people will have to wear masks when they go into a shop from July 24.

US: More than 880 employees of private contractors running US immigration detention centres have tested positive, according to congressional testimony given by company executives.

Japan: Health officials in Tokyo, Japan, appealed on Tuesday for more than 800 theatregoers to get tested after a production starring a Japanese boy band was found to be the source of at least 20 cases.

DRC: Ebola is spreading in the western Democratic Republic of the Congo, with nearly 50 known cases across a region bordering the Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

China: The wave of coronavirus cases connected with Beijing’s wholesale market that began in June appears to have been brought under control with no new cases of the disease reported in the Chinese capital for eight successive days.

Lockdown updates

Global: Cities and states around the world returned to tighter coronavirus restrictions to battle recurring outbreaks, as global infections passed 13 million and the World Health Organization warned there were “no shortcuts out of the pandemic”.

US: California’s governor Gavin Newsom ordered all bars to close statewide and all restaurants, cinemas and museums to halt indoor operations, in a dramatic rolling back of reopening efforts as cases continue to surge. The US has reported roughly 60,000 new cases a day for almost a week, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker.

China: Hong Kong will impose strict new social distancing measures from midnight on Tuesday, the most stringent there since the start of the pandemic, as authorities warned the risk of a large-scale outbreak was extremely high. Hong Kong has also introduced fines for anyone refusing to wear a mask on public transport.

Australia: As cases passed 10,000 on Tuesday, the state of New South Wales also introduced restrictions on bars. The measures are partly in response to a new cluster at a Sydney pub called The Crossroads. New South Wales recorded 13 new cases as of Monday evening, in addition to ten cases connected to the pub.

Philippines: In the Philippines, a quarter of a million people in Manila will return to lockdown in an attempt to stall the infection rate there. With just over 57,000 cases, the Philippines has the second-highest number of infections in south-east Asia. Nearly 1,600 people have died in the country over the course of the pandemic so far.

Mexico: An entire hospital in Mexico’s southern Oaxaca state has been put in quarantine, after 68% of its remaining staff tested positive.

Malaysia and Singapore: are to ease border restrictions between the two countries to support essential business and official traffic, as well as residents who have long-term work permits for the other country.

Economic updates

US: The New York Times reported that about 5.4 million Americans lost health insurance in the pandemic, more than have ever lost coverage through job losses in a year, according to a new study, as the Trump administration ramped up its war with Anthony Fauci, the federal government’s top public health expert, over the handling of the crisis.

Singapore: Singapore’s economy suffered a coronavirus-induced record contraction in the second quarter, putting it on course for its worst-ever slump this year. Gross domestic product (GDP) plunged by a record 41.2% in the three months ended March, on a quarter-on-quarter annualised basis, preliminary data from the Ministry of Trade and Industry showed on Tuesday.

China: Intensive testing of meat, seafood and other products for the coronavirus has tripled customs clearance times at some major Chinese ports, raising concerns the delays could ensnare global trade flows.

9:11 am

Coronavirus company news summary – DOD sends medical personnel to Texas and California

14 July

The US Department of Defense (DOD) has activated additional US Army Urban Augmentation Medical Task Forces (UAMTF) to help combat Covid-19 in Texas and California. A total of nearly 740 DOD medical and support professionals from the US Army, US Navy and US Air Force (USAF) are assigned. In Texas, an extra task force will assist the state’s efforts in the Houston region. Four UAMTFs, along with a US Navy Acute Care Team and four US Navy Rapid Rural Response teams will support medical-related needs across the state. In California, US Northern Command has assigned around 160 military medical and support personnel from the USAF to support the state.

LeoLabs has received $15m Defense Production Act (DPA) Title III contract from the US Department of Defense (DOD) to strengthen domestic space industrial base and retain critical capabilities in the country. The DPA Title III investment will make sure the company continues to space surveillance capability and analyse spacecraft in low earth orbit. It will help the company mitigate the financial distress caused due to Covid-19 and offset direct workforce. The company has operating locations across the US.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is expected to announce the date of its STAR exam, which is conducted to select candidates for airmen in two groups. The online test was originally scheduled to be held in March but was postponed due to Covid-19. The IAF update was quoted by NDTV as saying: “In view of the extraordinary situation prevailing in the country due to Covid-19 pandemic causing serious disruptions, STAR 01/20 e-Pariksha scheduled in March 2020 was postponed. Fresh dates will be intimated in the second week of July 2020.”

8:39 am

UK house prices could crash by 30% during ‘Covid crunch’

14 July

As Covid-19 is expected to cause the worst global recession since the World War II according to the World Bank’s analysis, the UK housing prices could crash by 20%-30%, opined Jonathan Davis sharing an article published by Anthony Codling, CEO at property platform twindig.

The article highlights that the current situation in housing is different from that during the credit crunch.

Anthony Codling, a former Executive Director at JP Morgan Cazenove, articulated the housing situation during ‘Covid crunch’ as seller drought and that during the credit crunch as buyer drought.

Despite the seller drought, Codling feels downward pressure on housing prices due to growing fear of unemployment and mortgages getting more expensive and limited as banks step up to protect their balance sheets.

Read more

9:27 am

International Update: Record 24 hour increase in Covid-19 cases – US state of Florida records more than 15,000 infections in one day

13 July

Global: The World Health Organization reported a record increase in global coronavirus cases on Sunday, with the total rising by 230,370 in 24 hours. The biggest increases were recorded in the United States, Brazil, India and South Africa.

A new report by Oxfam warns that the hunger crisis worsened by the pandemic could potentially kill more people each day than the infection itself, which has claimed more than half a million lives so far.

US: The state of Florida has registered 15,300 new infections on Sunday, the biggest daily increase in recorded coronavirus cases in any US state since the beginning of the pandemic.

Current hospitalisations in the US state of Texas rose by 327 to a new high of 10,410, a record high for the 14th day in a row.

New York City, once the epicenter of the US coronavirus outbreak, reported its first day with zero confirmed or probable virus deaths on Sunday since the pandemic began, according to initial data from the city’s health department.

Japan and the United States are sharing information about coronavirus cases at US military bases in Okinawa prefecture, a government spokesman said on Monday, after 62 new cases were confirmed at three bases.

Brazil: Brazil, the world’s number-two coronavirus hot spot after the United States, has registered 631 new deaths, with a new total of 1,864,681 confirmed cases, Reuters news agency reported quoting the country’s health ministry.

Mexico: Mexico’s coronavirus death toll passed Italy’s on Sunday, AFP reports, becoming the fourth-highest globally, with at least 35,006 fatalities over the course of the pandemic so far.

Argentina: Argentina has exceeded 100,000 cases of novel coronavirus infections as it struggles to contain spiralling case rates despite a strict quarantine imposed on the capital Buenos Aires and its surroundings.

Australia: The Australian state of New South Wales has recorded 14 new cases of coronavirus in the 24-hours to 8pm last night. Eight of the new cases are connected to a cluster at a restaurant and pub, the Crossroads Hotel. They include five people who had attended the hotel and three of their close contacts.

Philippines: The Philippines’ health ministry on Monday confirmed 162 new coronavirus deaths, the country’s biggest single-day increase in casualties, as a health ministry official said authorities validated some earlier cases included in the tally.

South Korea: One in three South Korean patients seriously ill with Covid-19 showed an improvement in their condition after being given Gilead Sciences Inc’s antiviral remdesivir, Reuters news agency reported on Monday quoting health authorities.

Germany: The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 159 to 198,963, Reuters news agency reported on Monday citing data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases.

UK: The UK said 650 more people tested positive, in line with the average 0.2% increase in the previous seven days, bringing the total to 289,603. The death toll climbed by 21 to 44,819.

Lockdown updates

US: Education Secretary Betsy DeVos pushed the administration’s position of opening schools in the fall, despite a heavy rate of Covid-19 infections in many states, in two Sunday-morning interviews.

Spain: Regional authorities in northeast Spain have tightened a health lockdown and confined over 140,000 people to only leaving their homes for work and other essential activities, the Associated Press news agency reported.

South Africa: President, Cyril Ramaphosa, has reinstated a ban on the sale of alcohol to reduce the volume of trauma patients so that hospitals have more beds to treat Covid-19 patients.

State of Palestine: The Palestinian Authority on Sunday imposed a night-time and weekend curfew on the occupied West Bank for the coming 14 days to try to rein in rising coronavirus numbers.

Singapore: Singapore can return to tackling Covid-19 and “other urgent challenges” with the general election over, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a Facebook post. The country’s cinemas are reopening Monday as part of a plan to ease restrictions.

China: The Hong Kong government will decide on Monday whether it will tighten social distancing measures, Radio Television Hong Kong reported, without saying where it got the information. Any decision would be announced as soon as Monday.

8:40 am

EU post Covid-19 economic recovery mirage will fade, says US economist

13 July

As the recession induced by Covid-19 affects the world economies, economists recall the situation caused by the 1918 flu pandemic.

Although the June economic data suggests that the US economy has improved, emerging trends suggest that the situation is getting worse again.

However, Daniel Lacalle, chief economist at Tressis Gestion, is upbeat about the recovery in the US compared to the Eurozone.

In one of his latest live shows, Lacalle opined that the economic recovery in the US will be better than that of Eurozone, where the mirage of recovery will fade as ‘demographics, high taxes, and bloated government spending’ work to a disadvantage.

Lacalle believes that US will outperform the Eurozone over the long run despite the temporary setbacks caused by Covid-19.

Read more

10:58 am

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global cases of Covid-19 over 12,270,000 – record rise in South Africa – further spike in Hong Kong

10 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 12,270,000, with over 555,000 deaths and 6,740,000 recoveries.

Worldwide, total confirmed cases and total deaths continue to rise.

This is primarily driven by high number of cases reported in North and Latin America, and South Asia.

More specifically, the US, Brazil, and India contribute approximately 45% of cases to the global confirmed case burden, and over 40% of deaths to the global death toll.

Cases are rising in Africa driven by record rise in daily new cases in South Africa.

Hong Kong kept the Covid-19 cases under control in the first wave of this pandemic.

However, a spike in new cases caused by local transmission have been reported in recent days, and Hong Kong is planning to suspend all the schools to control the outbreak.

Bishal Bhandari, PhD, Senior Epidemiologist at GlobalData

9:46 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases near 12.3 million – US cases rise by almost 62,000 in a day

10 July

Global: There are 12,272,098 confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, which relies on official government data, and 554,989 deaths.

US: Coronavirus cases in the US rose by 61,791 from a day earlier to 3.08 million, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg News. It was the first time the number of reported new cases exceeded the 60,000-a-day mark.

Texas reported a record number of deaths for the third straight day, topping 100 for the first time. Total fatalities rose 3.7%, to 2,918. The sharp increase in deaths this week follows a similar upturn in cases about three weeks ago.

The US state of California filed a lawsuit seeking to block a Trump administration rule that could force tens of thousands of international students to leave the country if their schools hold all classes online amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Mexico: Mexico on Thursday posted a fresh record for new coronavirus cases reported on a single day, with 7,280 cases, bringing its overall tally of infections to 282,283, health ministry data showed.

Australia: The Australian state of Victoria recorded 288 new cases – the highest one-day total for an Australian state since the outbreak began. The Australian government decided to cut incoming international passengers, including citizens, by half as well as charging them for their mandatory 14-day quarantine.

South Africa: South Africa announced on Thursday its highest daily number of confirmed coronavirus cases with 13,674.

UK: The UK has turned down the chance to join a European Union coronavirus vaccination program after ministers expressed concern about “costly delays,” the Telegraph reports, citing unidentified people in the government.

Lockdown updates

Japan: Japan is forging ahead with further steps to re-open the economy even as daily coronavirus cases continue to climb, with local media reporting Tokyo posted a daily record of over 240 infections on Friday.

New Zealand: New Zealand’s government has revealed that a third person has absconded from a managed isolation facility, saying a man cut through a fence so that he could go to buy some alcohol.

Singapore: Singaporeans voted in a general election Friday as the city-state struggles to recover from a coronavirus outbreak. The country has 45,423 active cases. At least 26 people have died.

UK: Recreational team sports are resuming in England, starting with cricket on Saturday, the same day that outdoor swimming pools can reopen. Beauticians, salons and spas can reopen on Monday, followed by gyms and indoor pools on July 25, according to UK government announcements.

China: Hong Kong is set to announce the suspension of all schools after a spike in locally transmitted coronavirus cases, the South China Morning Post reported.

China’s embassy in Kazakhstan has warned its citizens to take precautions against an outbreak of pneumonia in the country that it says is more lethal than Covid-19.

Algeria: Algeria will reimpose travel restrictions on Friday and increase testing in a bid to stop a rise in coronavirus infections, the government said.

9:25 am

Coronavirus company news – Ohio National Guard supports assisted living facility – AFMC to host virtual event – NNSY employs affordable disinfectant

10 July

The Ohio National Guard has been called to support residents and staff at the Carlin House assisted living facility in Logan, Ohio. A team of 20 Guard airmen and soldiers with medical and ancillary staff capabilities were activated and tasked with helping at the facility for two weeks. The team was deployed after more than half of their staff and residents tested positive for Covid-19. Around 65% of the residents and 37% of the staff had contracted the virus. The Guard medics and nurses several tasks including dispensing medications, evaluating conditions, taking vital signs and transferring residents across the facility.

The US Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) is hosting a Digital Campaign Virtual Industry Exchange Day on 30 July. The campaign seeks to modernise and streamline lifecycle process of Air Force platforms and systems. By leveraging modern digital capabilities, the effort aims to reduce the time taken to move new weapon systems and technologies from concept into the warfighter’s hands. The event will brief academia and industry on the overall Digital Campaign Strategy and collect input and feedback from them on the newly-launched priority effort.

The US Navy’s Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) has found a new cleaning solution to fight Covid-19. The common household disinfectant, a three percent hydrogen peroxide spray, is affordable, easy to procure, and non-hazardous. It has the capability to kill Covid-19 surface contamination without posing health and safety risks. Prior to this newest solution, the shipyard used Strike-1-N cleaning solution and alcohol dampened cloths.

7:18 am

FDI projected to contract by at least 30% due to Covid-19

10 July

The Covid-19 pandemic has undone years of economic globalisation as foreign direct investments have been disrupted like never before.

Developing countries are the most affected as foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows are expected to drop below the global average.

As the recovery from the pandemic prolongs and FDI inflows drop, developing countries are expected to lose export revenues consequently impact employment opportunities.

Stephany Griffith-Jones, an economist, shared an article on how the Covid-19 pandemic is impacting the flow of global FDI.

The article notes that developing countries are expected to be the worst affected due to this disruption of FDI.

The pandemic led to a capital outflow of $83bn in late March from developing countries, which is the largest ever recorded.

Further, global FDI flows are projected to contract by 30%-%40 between 2020 and 2021.

All sectors are expected to be affected particularly airlines, leisure, and restaurants.

Read more

9:37 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases total 12,043,922 – record daily rises in Mexico and Argentina

9 July

Global: Covid-19 infections have passed 12 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, with 12,043,922 currently confirmed.

The Trump administration’s decision to withdraw US membership from the World Health Organization (WHO) could have life-threatening consequences for people around the globe, said the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders, or MSF.

US: The US has surpassed three million confirmed cases of coronavirus, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. It said there have been 132,309 deaths among the total of 3,055,101 cases.

US Vice-President Mike Pence urged schools to reopen despite the pandemic, echoing comments from Trump. During a White House coronavirus task force briefing at the US department of education, Pence said: “It’s time for us to get our kids back to school.” But many school officials are expressing doubts about their ability to safely reopen their doors.

President Trump threatened to withhold funding from schools that don’t reopen. The president also criticised the school reopening guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as “very tough” and “expensive.”

Brazil: Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro vetoed provisions of a law requiring government to provide drinking water, disinfectants and guaranteed hospital beds to indigenous communities amid the pandemic.

Mexico: Mexico has posted a fresh record for new coronavirus cases reported on a single day, with 6,995 infections, overtaking Spain to register the world’s eighth highest case count, according to a Reuters news agency tally.

Argentina: Argentina has posted a daily record of 3,604 confirmed cases of Covid-19. The sharp rise, the first time daily cases have surpassed 3,000, took the total number to 87,030, fivefold the number at the start of June, though still well below caseloads in Brazil, Chile and Peru.

Chile: The number of coronavirus cases has passed the 301,000 mark in Chile, according to the Johns-Hopkins University tracker. The figure is currently 301,019, which is the sixth-highest in the world after the US, Brazil, India, Russia, and Peru.

Iran: Iran’s coronavirus death toll exceeded 12,000 on Wednesday, the health ministry said, with 153 deaths in the past 24 hours, amid a sharp rise in the number of daily infections and deaths in the past week as lockdown measures have eased.

Japan: Tokyo has recorded 224 new cases of coronavirus infection on Thursday, according to the public broadcaster NHK, surpassing the Japanese capital’s previous record of 206 infections on April 17.

Nigeria: Nigeria’s confirmed coronavirus cases has surpassed passed 30,000, Reuters reported quoting the country’s disease control centre, as the virus spreads in Africa’s most populous country amid an easing of restrictions put in place to curb the disease.

South Korea: South Korea has reported 50 new cases of the coronavirus as new clusters continue to emerge across the country, AP news agency reported.

China: China says it has nine new confirmed coronavirus cases, all of them brought from outside the country, and no new deaths, AP news agency reported.

The Chinese Government has announced that it is seeking international cooperation to conduct research projects on drugs, vaccines, test kits, and even traditional Chinese medicine to fight the coronavirus.

Hong Kong: Hong Kong has found at least 47 new locally-transmitted virus cases as of 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, HK01 reported. That topped the previous record of 28 daily local cases set in March. At least ten of the latest batch of cases were of unknown origin, HK01 said, indicating that authorities may struggle to contain the current outbreak.

Lockdown updates

Australia: Australia’s second-largest city, Melbourne, has re-entered lockdown, as the state of Victoria struggles to contain a coronavirus outbreak that has seen daily cases rise by over 100 for several days.

Italy: Italian authorities stopped 125 Bangladeshi people from entering the country today after they landed at Rome’s Fiumicino airport on a flight from Qatar. Yesterday, Italy suspended flights from Bangladesh for a week after 36 people who arrived in Rome on a flight the day before tested positive for coronavirus.

Austria: Austria’s government has announced travel restrictions for fellow EU members Romania and Bulgaria after a spike in the number of coronavirus cases in both countries.

Economy updates

Germany: Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned the European Union not to waste time in agreeing on a recovery plan to pull the continent out of a historic recession caused by the coronavirus lockdown. Merkel said she hoped to see a deal before the summer break on a proposed €750bn recovery plan.

UAE: Business conditions in Dubai showed signs of picking up in June as the city reopens after a lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

9:26 am

Coronavirus company news summary – Indian Navy concludes Operation Samudra Setu – RN crew runs test centres – US DOD to collect Covid-19 convalescent plasma

9 July

The Indian Navy has successfully completed the national effort to bring back Indian citizens stranded overseas due to Covid-19 pandemic. Named Operation Samudra Setu, the evacuation operation saw the safe return of 3,992 Indian citizens to their homeland by sea. The mission was launched on 5 May and lasted for more than 55 days with rigorous medical and safety protocols in place. The Indian Naval Ships Jalashwa, Airavat, Shardul and Magar, as well as IL-38 and Dornier aircraft, took part in the mission. The ships travelled more than 23,000km and were equipped with Covid-19 related equipment and facilities and women officers and military nursing staff.

Sailors from the UK Royal Navy’s newest aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales have been called up to run Covid-19 testing centres across the country. The British Army has trained the crew members on how to carry out the tests safely. The carrier’s teams are currently providing support for seven mobile testing units across Hampshire. Additionally, two teams have been put on standby to meet demand, if required. They are running sites in Eastleigh, Fawley and Brockenhurst. Around 3,000 military personnel are supporting efforts to contain the spread of the virus. HMS Prince of Wales is currently undergoing maintenance ahead of sea trials.

The US Department of Defense (DOD) has launched an effort to collect 8,000 units of Covid-19 convalescent plasma. The task is expected to help in the development of a treatment against the viral infection. Donations will be accepted only from patients fully recovered from Covid-19 and they must have been symptom-free for at least 14 days. Donors must weigh at least 110lb and be 17 years old or more. Fifteen Armed Services Blood Program centres have been set up across the continental US, and in Hawaii, Guam and Germany.

8:28 am

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 infections pass 12 million – numbers rising fast in US, India and Brazil

9 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 12,042,000, with over 550,000 deaths and 6,590,000 recoveries.

Daily confirmed cases continue to rise rapidly across the world driven mainly by the US, Brazil and India which are reporting high number of daily new cases.

Latin and North America remains the most affected region as Brazil, Chile, Peru, Mexico and the US contribute roughly 47% to the total confirmed case burden in the world.

Cases are in gradual decline in the majority of European countries.

South Asia which includes countries such as India, Pakistan and Bangladesh is one of the most populous areas in the world.

As these countries are reporting high numbers of new daily cases, with no indication that cases will decline in the near future, South Asia could be the next global pandemic hotspot after Latin America.

Bishal Bhandari, PhD, Senior Epidemiologist at GlobalData

7:28 am

Covid-19 pandemic could shift the balance of economic power

9 July

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the weaknesses of various countries in responding to a disaster of such as a viral outbreak.

China has been quick in controlling the outbreak, while other countries are yet to bring it under control.

The quick spread of the pandemic and inability to bring it under control led a series of blame games and rivalries among some of the biggest nations.

As China quickly recovers, the balance of power may shift post-pandemic.

Konstantina Beleli, an economist and consultant, shared an article on how the Covid-19 pandemic is aggravating existing rivalries and blame games between nations.

The article notes that in the differences in economic and demographic growth is expected to shift the balance of power from the west to the east.

The pandemic has exposed the weaknesses in the European Union (EU), while intensifying the rivalries between the US, China and Russia.

Read more

11:29 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases increasing by 200,000 a day – US deaths pass 131,000 – UK to reveal mini budget

8 July

Global: There are nearly 11.9 million confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University.

The WHO says coronavirus cases are increasing by 200,000 a day, doubling from April and May. The WHO emergencies chief said that the number of Covid-19 deaths appeared to be stable for the moment, but he cautioned that there is often a lag time between when confirmed cases increase and when deaths are reported due to the time it takes for the coronavirus to run its course in patients.

The World Health Organization on Tuesday acknowledged “evidence emerging” of the airborne spread of the coronavirus, after a group of scientists urged the global body to update its guidance on how the respiratory disease passes between people.

US: Known US coronavirus cases stand at almost three million, with 2,911,888 currently confirmed on the Johns Hopkins University tracker. The country’s death toll has passed 131,000 following a massive surge of new cases that has derailed efforts to restart the economy.

The US state of California has reported a record daily rise in confirmed cases of coronavirus – some 10,201 cases.

The US will withdraw the World Health Organisation (WHO) on 6 July 2021 under a 1948 joint resolution of the US Congress, which also obliges Washington to pay financial support. Joe Biden, Trump’s Democratic challenger for the presidency, said he would return the US to the WHO once elected.

Brazil: President Jair Bolsonaro has tested positive for Covid-19. He said he began feeling ill on Sunday and has been taking hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial drug with unproven effectiveness against Covid-19. In addition, the country has recorded another 1,312 deaths and more than 48,000 new cases.

UK: Scientists at University College London are warning of the risk of brain damage from coronavirus. UCL researchers studied 43 patients who suffered either temporary brain dysfunction, stroke, nerve damage or other serious effects on their brain, and say the disease can lead to severe neurological complications including psychosis and delirium.

India: Mumbai will no longer require a doctor’s prescription from people seeking a test for coronavirus, as India’s largest city and the epicenter of its outbreak seeks to catch more cases early.

Japan: Tokyo has confirmed more than 100 virus cases for six straight days, yet there’s no sign a new state of emergency will be announced.

Lockdown updates

Australia: Australia’s coronavirus emergency cabinet will consider limiting the number of its citizens and residents returning home from overseas, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday. The prime minister added there were no plans to reimpose restrictions across the country, after Victoria, the country’s second-most populous state, enforced stay-at-home rules in metropolitan Melbourne and one regional area due to a spike in infections.

New Zealand: Officials are reviewing security at mandatory quarantine hotels after a man who tested positive for Covid-19 escaped and spent an hour wandering city streets.

Israel: Israel’s public health director has quit amid a spike in new coronavirus cases, saying the country had been too hasty to reopen its economy and had lost its way in dealing with the pandemic.

Economy updates

UK: Britain is to unveil a mini-budget to kickstart the UK economy, hoping costly infrastructure investment will help build its way out of the crisis caused by the coronavirus outbreak. Finance minister Rishi Sunak is due to deliver his spending plans at 1130 GMT, having already flagged £3 billion ($3.7 billion, €3.3bn) of green investment.

Malaysia: Auditors for AirAsia, Southeast Asia’s biggest low cost carrier, have warned there is risk to the airline’s ability to continue in business as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

11:14 am

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 11.8 million – US infections reach 2.99 million as the rise continues

8 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 11,840,000, with over 544,000 deaths and 6,340,000 recoveries.

Daily confirmed cases continue to rise across the world.

The total confirmed cases in the US cases have now reached nearly three million and  will continue to rise rapidly in the near future.

Brazil and India which are the second and third most affected countries are also reporting high number of daily new cases.

In the majority of countries in Europe, cases are in decline although localized outbreaks have been reported in some countries.

Israel was one of the few countries which kept the Covid-19 cases under control in the first wave of this pandemic.

However, cases have started to spike in the recent days cancelling the earlier achievement and the country has re-imposed a lock-down.

Bishal Bhandari, PhD, Senior Epidemiologist at GlobalData 

9:19 am

Coronavirus company news – US Navy cancels Physical Fitness Assessment – US Military deploys to San Antonio – AFRL and SEMI NBMC to hold virtual workshop

8 July

The US Navy has cancelled its fall 2020 Physical Fitness Assessment (PFA) to help mitigate the spread of Covid-19 until further notice. The two components of the PFA Cycle 2, the official Body Composition Assessment and Physical Readiness Test, have been suspended. The service has also cancelled organised and group physical training at the command level. PFA is the second consecutive fitness cycle to be postponed because of the virus. The Physical Readiness Information Management System (PRIMS) will automatically update PFA entry for soldiers as ‘excused’. Fitness assessments are expected to resume in 2021.

The US Northern Command has announced that dozens of medical personnel have been deployed to San Antonio in Texas as Covid-19 cases rise. The deployment is in response to rea quest from the Department of Defense and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Around 50 medical and support personnel from the 627th Hospital Center in Fort Carson, Colorado will “provide medical assistance by embedding in medical care facilities” in the area. According to the command, the medical personnel include emergency room and critical care nurses, respiratory specialists and support personnel.

The US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), along with SEMI Nano-Bio Materials Consortium (NBMC), will conduct a virtual workshop series this August for the first time. This year’s annual workshop will focus on digital health. The sessions will cover aspects such as biomarker sensing, en-route care and point-of-care diagnostics for telemedicine, advancements in wearable monitors. It will also include a presentation from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

7:33 am

Pandemic driven job losses ten times times higher than 2008 banking crisis

8 July

Unemployment rates have reached unprecedented levels globally due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The impact of the pandemic on jobs is ten times higher than the 2008 global financial crisis.

Despite the job retention schemes and unemployment benefits offered by governments, unemployment rates are not expected to recover until after 2021.

Miles Corak, professor of economics at The Graduate Center, shared statistics related to the job retention schemes implemented across various countries from an article published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The article details how the Covid-19 pandemic is leading to a collapse in economic activity and increasing unemployment rates, which is expected to reach 12% globally and 10% for OECD countries by the end of 2020.

Corak noted that these job retention programmes have not succeeded in Canada as businesses have not adopted them.

He added that temporary layoffs are turning into permanent layoffs resulting in an increase in the duration of unemployment and decline in earnings.

In other news, Fausto Panunzi, professor of economics at the University of Bocconi, shared an article on the revival of pawnshops in Italy.

With banks declining to extend loans and government aid packages set to end next month, Italians are turning to pawnshops for loans.

Read more

10:16 am

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 cases pass 11.6 million as infections continue to rise – UK most heavily affected in Europe

7 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 11,620,000, with over 538,000 deaths and 6,303,000 recoveries.

Daily confirmed cases continue to rise across the world.

Of the top ten most affected countries, five countries are in North and Latin America. Brazil, Chile, Peru, Mexico and the US contribute roughly 45% to the total confirmed case burden in the world.

In Asia, India is continuing to report the high number of daily confirmed cases.

In the majority of countries in Europe, daily confirmed cases continue to decrease.

The UK has been the most heavily affected country in Europe with highest number of Covid-19 deaths.

The number of cases and deaths in the UK are in sharp decline in recent days.

However, localized outbreaks have been reported which may be an indicator of a potential resurgence of cases.

Bishal Bhandari, PhD, Senior Epidemiologist at GlobalData

9:58 am

International Update: US Covid-19 cases near three million – infections in India pass 700,000 – Israel re-imposes restrictions

7 July

US: Known US coronavirus cases stand at almost three million, with 2,911,888 currently confirmed on the Johns Hopkins University tracker. The country’s death toll passed 130,000 on Monday, following a massive surge of new cases that has derailed efforts to restart the economy.

India: India has reported 467 new deaths on Tuesday, taking the toll to 20,160. It also recorded 22,252 new infections, increasing the total to 719,665. The country on Monday overtook Russia as the third most affected country globally, behind the United States and Brazil.

Australia: The state of Victoria, which is fighting a worsening coronavirus outbreak, has confirmed 191 new cases overnight, breaking yesterday’s record of 127 cases.

UK: Nearly one in six Britons will refuse a coronavirus vaccine if and when one becomes available, and a similar number are unsure whether they will get one, according to a survey. The findings come amid a significant rise in anti-vaccination sentiment on social media, and represent a threat to efforts to contain the disease.

South Africa: South Africa’s coronavirus cases have passed 200,000, the highest total in Africa. There are currently 205,721 cases and 3,310 deaths recorded, making it the 15th worst-affected country worldwide.

DRC: The Democratic Republic of Congo extended its coronavirus health emergency on Monday for 15 days, the sixth extension since March, with some lawmakers voicing concern about the effect on the economy.

China: Beijing has reported no new cases of coronavirus for the first time since an outbreak emerged at the Chinese capital’s main wholesale market last month.

Lockdown updates

New Zealand: New Zealand’s government will limit the number of citizens flying home with the national airline to reduce pressure on its overflowing quarantine facilities.

Israel: Israel has re-imposed certain restrictions after a surge in cases, to avoid a wider lockdown that could devastate the economy. Bars, nightclubs, gyms and event halls have been closed.

9:53 am

Coronavirus company news – US National Guard supports Covid-19 testing and supplies PPE – South Africa deploys military medics – Serbian troops build field hospital

7 July

The Michigan National Guard has partnered with local and state officials to support free, drive-through Covid-19 testing in Cadillac and Wexford County. Around 18 members from the 182 Task Force were deployed to the Baker College of Cadillac parking lot to assist with testing. Nearly 1,000 tests were available for residents. Meanwhile, Indiana National Guard helped test long-term care staff across the state. More than 47,000 employees at 520 facilities were tested last month. In North Carolina, guard members have distributed personal protective equipment (PPE) for school nurses in public and charter schools in the state.

South Africa has deployed 47 South African National Defence Force (SANDF) medical personnel to the Eastern Cape city of Port Elizabeth to support efforts to fight Covid-19 pandemic, according to AFP. The team of SANDF military health practitioners includes doctors, nurses, clinical support staff and technicians. They were brought in the province requested military assistance. In June, some Cuban medical personnel were posted to help the province, which has seen a record surge in coronavirus cases.

The Serbian military has constructed a makeshift field hospital following a spike in the number of new Covid-19 cases in the capital Belgrade. The emergency field hospital opened inside the Belgrade Arena and is equipped with 500 beds. This facility was set up after the military built another 110-bed field hospital in the southern town of Novi Pazar.

7:23 am

Orthodox economics ineffective during Covid-19 pandemic

7 July

The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the already deepening crises facing the world.

Traditional economic theories did not provide the solutions needed to address these problems as it is limited to cost-benefit analysis and mathematical models.

Post Covid-19, economists should focus on precautionary action that can help the world cope with unforeseen disasters.

Richard Murphy, professor of international political economy at the University of London, shared an article on how orthodox economics is proving ineffective during the current Covid-19 pandemic.

The article notes that the world was already facing a number of crises before the pandemic including climate change, inequality and robots replacing humans.

Conventional economic theories have not been helpful in addressing these problems as solutions were often disregarded as being unaffordable and counter-productive.

The article notes that the traditional cost-benefit way of decision making should be avoided and a bottom-up approach to economics must be adopted.

Read more

12:12 pm

GlobalData Epidemiologist Report: Global Covid-19 infections pass 11.45 million – South Africa struggles to control surge of new cases

6 July

Globally, the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 have reached over 11,450,000, with over 535,000 deaths and 6,180,000 recoveries.

Cases have been rising rapidly in North and Latin America, with the US and Brazil contributing to the most of in the increase in the daily new cases.

In the majority of countries in Europe and Asia, daily confirmed cases continue to decrease.

However, cases in India are rising at the fastest pace in Asia with a record number of daily new cases.

South Africa has been the most heavily affected country in Africa by Covid-19.

Given that it is one of the most developed countries in Africa, its struggle to control the surge of new cases does not bode well for other African countries with far fewer resources than South Africa.

Bishal Bhandari, PhD, Senior Epidemiologist at GlobalData

10:06 am

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases pass 11.4 million – infections rising by one million a week

6 July

Global: There are currently 11,419,638 confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University, as infections continue to rise by around one million per week. There are 15 countries with over 200,000 known cases each.

US: The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sunday reported 52,228 new cases, and said the number of deaths had risen by 271 to 129,576.

Brazil: Brazil has recorded 26,051 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours as well as 602 deaths, pushing cumulative deaths to a total of 64,867.

Mexico: Health authorities reported 4,683 confirmed new infections of Covid-19 on Sunday, pushing its tally to a total of 256,848, and 273 more deaths to a total of 30,639. In addition, Mexico’s president Andres Manuel Lopex Obrador refused to compare Mexico with European countries as the country’s coronavirus death toll mounted.

India: India reported just under 25,000 cases and 613 deaths in 24 hours – the biggest daily spike since the first case was detected in late January.

Iran: The latest figures published by the Iranian health ministry on Sunday showed a record 163 had died in the past 24 hours, higher than any daily figure in the country over the course of the pandemic so far.

Peru: Peru on Sunday jumped past 300,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19, the fifth-highest in the world, as the nation of nearly 33 million people slowly reopens its battered economy.

UK: The Department for Health and Social Care reported that the UK had another 516 positive cases on Saturday, down from 624 the day before and taking the total to more than 285,000. There were 22 new deaths from the virus.

Australia: The state of Victoria recorded its largest jump in cases at any point in the coronavirus crisis, with 127 cases reported on Monday, as the premier announced the border with neighbouring New South Wales would be closed from midnight on Tuesday.

Germany: Germany’s coronavirus infection rate rose slightly while remaining below the key threshold of 1.0 for a 12th day, and the number of new cases held far below the level at the height of the outbreak.

South Africa: South Africa reported a record 173 deaths, bringing the total to 3,199. The number came after four consecutive days of record rises in cases. Cumulative infections rose to 196,750 with 8,773 new cases in the latest daily report.

Lockdown updates

Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia announced health protocols to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus in the 2020 hajj season, banning gatherings and meetings between pilgrims, the state news agency said on Monday.

Spain: A lockdown has been ordered for a region of Galicia in north-western Spain, restricting travel in and out of A Marina for about 70,000 residents. The five-day measure was ordered after cases started to rise from two different outbreaks.

Greece: Greece has announced it will prohibit Serbian tourists from entering the country as of 6am tomorrow. The ban, due to last until at least 15 July, follows a surge in incidents of coronavirus in the Balkan state.

Kazakhstan: Kazakhstan on Sunday imposed a second round of nationwide restrictions that are to last at least two weeks, in a bid to counter a huge surge in coronavirus cases which has overwhelmed the country’s healthcare system.

India: India has withdrawn a planned reopening of the Taj Mahal, citing the risk of new coronavirus infections spreading in the northern city of Agra from visitors, as the country’s infections are rising at the fastest pace in three months.

Philippines: Coronavirus cases in the Philippines rose by a record on Sunday, which authorities attributed to increased contact among the population as quarantine measures are eased.

Economic updates

UK: Prime minister Boris Johnson will inject £1.57bn into Britain’s beleaguered arts and heritage sectors in a long-awaited coronavirus rescue package described by the government as the biggest one-off investment in UK culture.

Hong Kong: Business conditions in Hong Kong showed further signs of stabilization in June, as the government eased social-distancing restrictions with coronavirus infection rates largely under control.

US: A House Democratic spending bill will set aside $10 billion for the coronavirus response and require the US to send funds to the World Health Organization, an agency targeted by President Donald Trump over its handling of the pandemic.

9:34 am

Coronavirus company news summary – Leonardo launches first virtual exhibition – IAI, Group 42 to develop Covid-19 solution – Bundeswehr studies Covid-19 sniffer dogs

6 July

Italian defence company Leonardo has launched its first virtual exhibition focussing on the naval capabilities for Middle Eastern maritime security. Named “Leonardo Naval Defence for the Middle East – a virtual experience”, the event is the company’s first commercial activity dedicated to maintaining marketing focus on its products and platforms. The virtual event will feature 3D models and videos of Leonardo’s naval capabilities such as its ‘naval cockpit’, advanced combat systems, naval guns, ammunition, targets, missiles, torpedoes, sensor and radar systems, naval helicopters, unmanned platforms and many more technologies.

Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) ELTA has signed a research and development collaboration agreement with Abu-Dhabi-based Group 42 to develop technology solutions to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. Through a video conference call, the partners discussed how to develop new Covid-19-focused systems using AI and other innovative technologies such as lasers and sensors. IAI has been assessing ways to leverage its technological know-how, capabilities and solutions to safeguard Israel and the local healthcare system. It has also teamed up with healthcare and defence parties, the Directorate of Defense Research & Development (DDR&D), and the State Companies Authority.

Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces, is studying whether German military sniffers dogs can detect active Covid-19 virus in human saliva. German media company Deutsche Welle reported that the project is being carried out jointly with the University of Veterinary Medicine Hanover, Foundation (TiHo). It involves a range of sniffer dog breeds such as sheepdogs, spaniels and retrievers. The research is being conducted at a German military K9 training centre in the western German town of Ulmen.

India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has built the 1,000-bed Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Covid hospital in Delhi in just 12 days. Tata Sons made a major contribution to the project. The 25,000m² medical facility has 250 ICU beds and is equipped with monitoring equipment and ventilators. It will be maintained by DRDO and operated by a medical team of doctors, nurses and support staff from the Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS).

6:58 am

Low demand could stall oil prices until 2030

6 July

Oil demand witnessed an unprecedented shock in 2020 as the Covid-19 pandemic brought the world to a standstill.

Lockdown measures and decline in mobility is expected to lead to the largest fall in oil demand in history in 2020.

Although demand returned in the second quarter, oil demand may not return to peak before 2030.

Daniel Lacalle, an economist and chief economist at Tressis SV, shared an article on the forecasts on oil demand made by Goldman Sachs.

Demand for oil is expected to return to pre-Covid-19 pandemic levels by 2022, according to analysts at Goldman Sachs.

The article adds that global demand for oil is expected to decline by 8% in 2020 and rebound by 6% in 2021.

Further, Goldman Sachs analysts predict that oil prices are not expected to peak before 2030.

Read more

12:28 pm

International Update: Global Covid-19 cases near 10.9 million – US has more than 2.7 million

3 July

Global: Currently, 10,890,511 cases of coronavirus have now been confirmed worldwide, and 521,693 deaths recorded, according to Johns Hopkins University.

US: The past week has seen the US break its own one-day case record four times, according to data compiled by researchers at Johns Hopkins University.

The novel coronavirus is showing some signs of mutating in a way that may make it easier to spread, according to Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Brazil: Second only to the US in terms of number of cases and deaths, Brazil now has almost 1.5 million confirmed infections.

India: India reported another single-day record for new virus cases on Friday – 20,903.

Australia: The state of Victoria is still struggling to contain a new outbreak, with 66 additional cases confirmed on Friday.

Japan: In Tokyo, more 120 new cases were found on Friday, the Nikkei newspaper reported.

South Korea: South Korea reported 63 new coronavirus cases as of Thursday, most from domestic infections outside Seoul.

UK: Staff and residents in UK care homes for people over 65 and those with dementia will receive regular Covid-19 tests from Monday.

The UK government has ordered 65 million syringes and needles – a set for almost every person in the country – from US-based medical devices company Becton Dickinson & Co..

Africa: The World Health Organization (WHO) said more than 6,000 health workers have been infected with the coronavirus in 38 countries across Africa since the pandemic began.

Hundreds of health workers have been infected with coronavirus in South Africa’s Gauteng province.

New Guinea: A leading obstetrician has advised women in Papua New Guinea not to fall pregnant for up to two years.

Peru: Peru’s Covid-19 death toll rose to 10,045 on Thursday, the health ministry said, a day after the Latin American nation began easing a lockdown in a bid to revive the economy.

Lockdown updates

Mexico: The leading health official in the state of Sonora, Mexico, has asked the federal government to temporarily close the border to non-essential visits from the US.

US: Federal agencies in the US said airlines should consider limiting capacity on planes to promote social distancing, but stopped short of requiring them to do so

UK: Holidaymakers from England will be able to visit Spain, Italy, France and Germany without having to quarantine for 14 days on their return.

Economic updates

Global: Citigroup is unlikely to bring more than 40% of workers back to offices around the world until a coronavirus vaccine is available, said Paco Ybarra, who leads the bank’s institutional clients group.

Latin America: The United Nations has predicted that more than 2.7m businesses could go under and 8.5m jobs could be lost in Latin America due to the coronavirus crisis.

UK: Companies expect the damage to business from the virus to linger on into next year, countering the optimism coming from some Bank of England policy makers.

9:23 am

Coronavirus company news summary – MOD centre delivers 10,000 items to NHS – Lydall secures DOD funding for masks

3 July

The UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) Donnington Defence Fulfilment Centre has reached a milestone in the delivery of critical medical equipment to NHS frontline. The distribution centre has despatched more than 10,000 items comprising Bi-Lateral Ventilators, oxygen concentrators, Mechanical Ventilators, Syringe Drivers and Volumetric Pumps in three months. The supplies were delivered across all of the UK, Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey. The centre is operated by the MOD’s procurement arm Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S).

Lydall has secured investment from the US Department of Defense (DOD) to increase the production capacity of meltblown filtration media. The critical commodity component is used to make N95 respirators and surgical masks. With this contract, the company will install two fine fibre meltblown lines to its Rochester facility in New Hampshire, US. The increased domestic production capacity is expected to support the manufacture of up to an estimated 100 million N95 respirators per month or 383 million surgical masks per month by May next year.

Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa has successfully completed the delivery of face shields under an order placed by the US Department of Defense (DOD). The order was facilitated by the US Embassy in Pretoria and saw the company assemble and supply a total of 50,000 face shields to the South African Military Health Service members. The order was funded by the US AFRICOM Humanitarian Assistance programme while Ford sponsored the entire labour costs for its employees. The Covid-19 face shields will also be distributed to Botswana, Namibia and the Kingdoms of Eswatini and Lesotho. So far, the company has manufactured 258,000 face shields.