(Reuters) – Australians admitted to hospitals from COVID-19 neared record levels on Wednesday, as authorities urged businesses to let staff work from home and recommended people wear masks indoors and get booster shots urgently amid a major outbreak.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* Eikon users, see COVID-19: MacroVitals https://apac1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/cms/?navid=1592404098 for a case tracker and summary of news.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* China reported 1,012 new coronavirus cases for July 19, of which 150 were symptomatic and 862 were asymptomatic, the National Health Commission said on Wednesday.
* Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Tuesday the economic recovery from a recent bout of weakness was not yet firmly established and “painstaking” efforts were needed to stabilise overall economic performance, according to state media.
* China will hold the Asian Games in Hangzhou city from Sept. 23 to Oct. 8 in 2023, Chinese media reported on Tuesday, citing the governing Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). The 2022 Asian Games was postponed until 2023 because of the COVID-19 situation.
EUROPE
* An alliance of companies has pledged to ensure equitable access to vaccines and treatments for pandemics, as the friction around intellectual property rights for COVID-19 interventions between the pharmaceutical industry and developing nations endures.
* European nations must accelerate vaccine uptake and bring back mask wearing to tackle a surge in COVID-19 cases driven by an Omicron offshoot and avoid stricter measures later in the year, a senior World Health Organization official said on Tuesday.
* The European Commission has signed a joint procurement contract for an antiviral treatment for patients with COVID-19 with Gilead Sciences Inc, it said on Tuesday.
* England’s backup goalkeeper Hannah Hampton has left the team camp after testing positive for COVID-19, the Women’s European Championship hosts said on Tuesday.
AMERICAS
* The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday recommended use of Novavax Inc’s COVID-19 vaccine for individuals aged 18 and above.
* A new wave of COVID-19 cases and rising hospitalizations ahead of an October election are creating fresh headaches for Quebec’s government, which says it has no plans to reintroduce mask mandates in the Canadian province despite calls by some doctors to do so.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* Patients hospitalized with COVID-19 whose blood flows less freely than normal are at higher risk of death from complications, a U.S. study showed. The findings indicate that measurement of blood viscosity, or blood thickness, should be a regular part of these patients’ medical work-up, the researchers said.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* New U.S. home-building activity fell to a nine-month low in June and permits for new construction projects slipped as well, the latest indication of a cooling housing market as surging mortgage rates reduce affordability.
* Asian shares extended a global rally on Wednesday as strong U.S. corporate earnings and the expected resumption of Russian gas supply to Europe helped lift sentiment and ease fears of a recession, while the dollar was mired near two-week lows.
(Compiled by Rashmi Aich; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
