Bloomberg News
Mon., July 19, 2021, 7:15 p.m.
(Bloomberg) -- A summer resurgence of the pandemic stoked by the rapid spread of the delta variant is raising alarms, sparking a global stocks selloff.
The U.S. warned citizens to not travel to the U.K. and Indonesia amid rising infections in the two nations. It lowered the advisory for India, telling citizens to reconsider travel after a drop in cases there. But doctors and scientists in India say the country is ill prepared for a possible third wave.
Australia’s Victoria state extended its fifth lockdown since the pandemic began and tightened border restrictions with Sydney. Anthony Fauci said the Biden administration is “practically pleading” with Americans to get inoculated.
Key Developments:
Global Tracker: Cases top 190.8 million; deaths pass 4.09 millionVaccine Tracker: More than 3.64 billion doses administered U.S. raises U.K. travel alert as Covid surge mars ‘Freedom Day’ Tokyo Olympics kicks off in the shadow of CovidA secretive body is making questionable Covid decisions in India Women are still suffering more than men in pandemic job hit
Victoria Extends Lock down, Shuts Border to Sydney (10:07 a.m. HK)
Australia’s Victoria state extended its fifth lock down since the pandemic began and tightened border restrictions with Sydney as authorities battle to contain an outbreak of the delta variant.
Stay-at-home orders will remain in place for another seven days until midnight July 27 after Victoria recorded 13 new locally-acquired cases for a second straight day, state Premier Daniel Andrews told reporters Tuesday. The state will effectively shut its border to people from Sydney, with exceptions for essential workers such as freight drivers and for compassionate reasons, he said.
Authorities have issued stay-at-home orders for almost half of the nation’s population, hampering the country’s economic recovery after Australia slid into its first recession in about three decades last year.
Philippines May Return to Stricter Movement Curbs (9:14 a.m. HK)
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said more stringent movement restrictions may be needed after the country detected cases of the more transmissible delta coronavirus variant.
“We may need to reimpose stricter restrictions to avoid mass gathering and prevent superspreader events,” Duterte said in a recorded briefing aired late Monday. The reported local cases of the delta variant is “a cause for serious alarm and concern,” he said.
The Philippines, home to the second-worst Covid-19 outbreak in Southeast Asia, has recorded more than 1.5 million cases and 26,786 deaths as of July 19.
Many Unvaccinated Cops in Omaha, Nebraska (5:30 a.m. HK)
In Omaha, Nebraska, 27% of city firefighters and 41% of police officers remain unvaccinated, according to records obtained by the Omaha-World Herald. The city government doesn’t require its employees to get vaccinated.
U.S. Travel Warnings (4:45 p.m. NY)
The U.S warned citizens not to travel to the U.K. and Indonesia, two nations that are seeing a jump in Covid infections. The State Department raised its advisory for both countries to Level 4, or do not travel, from Level 3, or reconsider travel.
India, where infections are still hovering near 40,000 a day but are a fraction of the highs in May, had its advisory lowered to Level 3 from Level 4.
Texas Hospitalizations Surge Most Since April (3:54 p.m. NY)
Virus hospitalizations in Texas topped 3,000 for the first time in more than three months, state health department figures showed.
Medical facilities across the Lone Star state said 3,046 beds were occupied by virus patients, the most since April 12, according to the health department. The hospital tally has been rising for 17 straight days, the longest upward streak since November.
Despite the surge, there were still almost 11,000 available hospital beds and more than 700 open intensive-care spots.
N.J.’s Murphy Touts Effectiveness of Vaccines (3:30 p.m. NY)
New Jersey has reported 31 deaths among the 4,432,769 individuals who were fully vaccinated as of June 28. Though the fatalities were tragic, Governor Phil Murphy said, they showed that as complete doses, the vaccines are 99.9993% effective at preventing death.
In all, 3,474 “breakthrough” cases were reported, demonstrating 99.92% overall efficacy, Murphy said at a Trenton virus update. Among those, 84 people required hospitalization, for a 99.998% rate of keeping individuals from becoming in-patients.
Those who died typically had conditions, including weakened immune systems, that made them more vulnerable to Covid-19, according to Ed Lifshitz, a physician and medical director of the state Health Department.
S. Africa Has Record Vaccinations After Riots (3:30 p.m. NY)
South Africa vaccinated a record 223,969 people against Covid-19 on Monday, indicating that its inoculation program has overcome disruptions from widespread rioting last week. Daily vaccinations last week fell to as low as about 137,000 as the administering of the shots was disrupted in Gauteng and brought to a virtual halt in KwaZulu-Natal, the province worst hit by the violence.
Canada to Allow Vaccinated U.S. Visitors (2 p.m. NY)
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government presented a road map to reopening Canada’s borders to non-essential international travel by the beginning of September.
Fully vaccinated U.S. residents will be allowed into Canada as of Aug. 9, according to a plan unveiled Monday in Ottawa. Tourists will need to provide border officials with proof of vaccination and a negative Covid-19 test completed before arrival. They will be exempt from the 14-day quarantine and two post-arrival coronavirus tests.
Florida Congressman Tests Positive (12:01 p.m, NY)
Florida Representative Vern Buchanan says he has tested positive for Covid-19 despite being fully vaccinated earlier this year. The top Republican on the Ways and Means subcommittee on trade said in a statement he was tested after experiencing flu-like symptoms and is now quarantining at his home.
U.K. Limits Shots to Most Vulernable Kids (12:01 p.m. NY)
Only the most vulnerable children and those living with at-risk adults will receive Covid-19 vaccinations in the U.K., the government said Monday, ruling out a broader program due to fears over rare side effects.
The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will be offered to 12 to 15-year-olds with severe neuro-disabilities, Down’s Syndrome, immunosuppression and profound learning disabilities, as well as children aged 12 to 17 who live with an immunosuppressed person, officials said. It will also be offered to healthy 17-year-olds within three months of their 18th birthday.
The decision puts the U.K. on a different path than countries including the U.S. and France. The British position is driven by fears of rare cases of myocarditis -- an inflammation of the heart muscle -- and pericarditis -- an inflammation of membranes around the heart -- in younger people who have had the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.
NYC Has No Plans to Change Mask Rules (11:45 a.m. NY)
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said he has no plans to renew indoor mask mandates despite a spike in cases stemming from the delta Covid-19 variant and a move by Los Angeles to again require residents to wear masks inside.
The seven-day average Covid-19 positivity rate in the city jumped to 1.69% on Saturday, more than double the percentage of residents who tested positive from last month. The delta variant makes up 69% of cases sequenced, Health Commissioner Dave Chokshi said at the mayor’s daily briefing.
Florida’s DeSantis Rips Vaccine Experts (11:30 a.m. NY)
Governor Ron DeSantis said Florida’s spike in positive test results is part of the cyclical nature of the coronavirus. He also suggested the problem lay not with people who were refusing to get Covid-19 vaccines, but with those trying to persuade unvaccinated people to get the shots.
“I do not agree with some of these people, some of these ‘experts’ who lambast people and criticize them or say they’re stupid or something. That’s not the way to reach folks,” the Republican governor said at a press briefing.
Malaysia Eases Curbs With Vaccine Ramp-Up (8:27 a.m. NY)
Malaysia eased virus protocols following the speeding up of the nation’s vaccine rollout, Deputy Prime Minister Ismail Yaakob Sabri announced.
Office attendance in the public sector will be raised to 40% to boost productivity, and accounting services will be allowed to operate with 60% capacity, he said. Business hours for daily and wet markets will be extended from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Ports, airports and logistics sectors can operate 24 hours, according to the statement.
Malaysia aims to fully vaccinate all its adult population by October, the country’s prime minister said on Sunday. |
