(Reuters) – France’s COVID-19 hospitalisations crossed 10,000 for the first time since June end, while overwhelmed hospitals in the Philippines faced staff resignations as the Delta variant sent cases soaring across Southeast Asia and worldwide.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
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EUROPE
* Shopping malls in Paris and large parts of France had to ask customers to show a health pass, as the government increased pressure on people to get vaccinated.
* North Macedonia has reimposed restrictions on access to cafes, restaurants and public events in a bid to subdue a fresh spike in infections and nudge citizens to get vaccinated, prompting public anger and protests.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased its travel advisory for India.
* The Tokyo Paralympics will take place generally without spectators, organisers said, as the government was set to prolong COVID-19 emergency measures in the capital and other regions that will run through the Games.
* Hong Kong’s government said it would upgrade 15 overseas places including the United States, Spain and France to “high risk” from “medium risk” by Aug. 20, meaning arrivals from those countries will face lengthened quarantine.
AMERICAS
* All healthcare workers in New York state must be vaccinated unless they have a medical or religious exemption, Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a new mandate.
* As the Delta variant sweeps through Mexico’s cities, more adults in their 30s and 40s are ending up in the hospital with polls showing vaccine hesitancy is rising in younger age groups.
* Local officials in Texas who have been battling their governor over mask mandates said they would continue to require face coverings in schools despite a setback in the state Supreme Court.
* New Yorkers interviewed by Reuters were largely backing the push by the city’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, to require proof of vaccination to enter restaurants, gyms and other businesses.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* The U.S. CDC warned against travel to Turkey because of a rising number of cases.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* Pfizer and German partner BioNTech have submitted to U.S. regulators the initial data from an early-stage trial toward seeking authorization of a booster dose of their COVID-19 vaccine.
* Europe’s drugs regulator said it was evaluating the use of Roche’s arthritis drug, Actemra, in hospitalised adults with severe COVID-19.
* The UK’s health regulator said coronavirus vaccines did not raise the risk of miscarriage, and that it had not found any link between the shots and changes to menstrual periods.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* Investors managed to shrug off new concerns about China’s economy, the Delta variant and turmoil in Afghanistan to largely drive stocks higher, while also boosting some more defensive investments.[MKTS/GLOB]
* The initial success of Israel’s COVID-19 vaccination rollout that enabled an opening of the economy bolstered growth in the second quarter, official figures showed.
(Compiled by Devika Syamnath and Veronica Snoj; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Arun Koyyur)
