(Reuters) – The European Commission said it would contribute 400 million euros ($475 million) to an initiative led by the World Health Organization to buy COVID-19 vaccines, but did not clarify whether EU states would acquire shots through the WHO scheme.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* For an interactive graphic tracking the global spread, open https://tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser.
* For a U.S.-focused tracker with state-by-state and county map, open https://tmsnrt.rs/2w7hX9T in an external browser.
* Eikon users, see MacroVitals (cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?navid=1592404098) for a case tracker and summary of news.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* Private tuition centres shut for the first time in South Korea’s capital on Monday and traffic was light on the first working day of tighter social-distancing rules aimed at halting a second wave of infections.
* Japan’s plan to more than triple its coronavirus testing is unlikely to improve its fight against the outbreak without an overhaul in the test approval process, experts say.
* Hong Kong will resume face-to-face school classes from Sept. 23 as authorities aim to wind back restrictions.
* India reported 78,512 infections on Monday, more than any other country but fewer than the previous day when it posted the world’s biggest single-day tally, as authorities looked to open more sectors of the economy.
* A more infectious mutation of the novel coronavirus has been found in Indonesia, the Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology said.
* The state at the epicentre of Australia’s second wave of COVID-19 infections said the number of new cases fell to a near two-month low.
EUROPE
* Paris will make free COVID-19 testing available in all of the capital’s 20 districts, as authorities battle against signs of a re-emergence of the virus in France.
* British finance minister Rishi Sunak is considering a sweeping set of tax increases to help fix the huge hole in the public finances, two newspapers said.
AMERICAS
* U.S. cases surpassed 6 million on Sunday as many states in the Midwest reported increasing infections, according to a Reuters tally.
* The head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is willing to fast-track a COVID-19 vaccine as quickly as possible, the Financial Times reported him as saying in an interview published on Sunday.
* Total cases in Colombia surpassed 600,000 on Sunday, ahead of the end to more than five months of lockdown.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Following a five-month lockdown, South Africa is easing domestic travel restrictions, allowing hotels to reopen.
* Schools in Nigeria’s commercial hub of Lagos will reopen next month.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* High-profile COVID-19 vaccines developed in Russia and China share a potential shortcoming: they are based on a common cold virus that many people have been exposed to, potentially limiting their effectiveness, some experts say.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* China’s largest state-owned banks are readied for rising bad debt and increased margin pressure in the months ahead as forbearance policies designed to give borrowers breathing space during the coronavirus crisis expire.
* The Danish government proposed a significant boost in state spending next year, including creating a $1.5 billion “war chest” to help its economy and secure access to a future vaccine.
* The share of German companies that have implemented short-time work plans declined to 37% in August from 42% in July, a poll by German economic institute Ifo showed.
* Kenya’s central bank will have to approve any plans by commercial lenders to issue dividends for this year, it said in a memo to bank executives seen by Reuters on Monday.
(Compiled by Milla Nissi and Uttaresh.V; Editing by Giles Elgood)
