(Reuters) – Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam called on residents to “remain confident” and support her administration’s measures to contain a worsening COVID-19 outbreak, as daily infections surged by more than 40 times since the start of February.
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.
EUROPE
* Britain will offer COVID-19 vaccines to all 5-11 year olds, widening the rollout of vaccines in children in a decision that has been taken more slowly than in some other countries.
AMERICAS
* Top U.S. infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said it is time for the United States to start inching back towards normality, despite remaining risks from COVID-19.
* Marriott and Hilton, two of the biggest U.S. hotel chains, told investors they expect people to resume packing their bags for business and leisure this year at rates not seen since before the pandemic. ASIA-PACIFIC
* Japan is set to announce on Thursday that it will ease border controls put in place to counter the spread of the coronavirus, measures that are the strictest among wealthy nations and have been slammed by business leaders and educators.
* Finance leaders of the world’s top 20 economies will debate the fallout from geopolitical tensions, global inflation and tighter monetary policy at a two-day meeting kicking off on Thursday. But COVID-19 cases overshadow the gathering with many ministers either attending online or skipping the meeting altogether.
AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST
* BioNTech has developed a vaccine factory made from shipping containers that it plans to ship to Africa as assembly kits to ease what the WHO has described as huge disparities in COVID-19 vaccine access.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* An Omicron-specific booster could be ready by August, the CEO of U.S. biotech firm Moderna told Reuters, but the firm is still gathering clinical data to determine whether that vaccine would offer better protection than a new dose of the existing jab.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* Singapore maintained its forecast for the economy to expand 3-5% this year as the city-state’s recovery from the pandemic slump continues, although officials flagged downside risks to global growth and rising inflationary pressures.
* The unemployment rate in Australia stayed at 4.2%, matching the lowest reading since 2008 when it bottomed out at 4.0%. The impact of the Omicron wave was felt most in hours worked which slid 8.8% as employees stayed home sick or were forced to isolate.
* Japan ran its biggest trade deficit in a single month in eight years in January as high energy costs swelled imports and manufacturers struggled with global supply constraints, causing a decline in car shipments.
* Israel’s economy grew at its fastest pace in 21 years in 2021 as consumer spending, exports and investment rebounded with double-digit gains following a pandemic-stifled 2020, raising the spectre of the central bank raising interest rates soon.
* Norway’s mainland economy grew last year by 4.2%, its quickest pace since 2007 as the country rebounded from a pandemic-driven slump in activity, data showed.
(Compiled by Sherry Jacob-Phillips; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
