Factbox: Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

Syringes with the Pfizer vaccine are prepared for a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine clinic aimed at youths ages 12 or older at La Colaborativa in Chelsea, Massachusetts, U.S., June 11, 2021. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

Nov 22 (Reuters) – Slovakia’s Prime Minister Eduard Heger is intensively considering a possible three-week lockdown, after Austria became on Monday the first country in western Europe to reimpose a lockdown since vaccines were rolled out. read more

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

* French health authorities reported 5,266 daily new COVID-19 infections on Monday, pushing the seven-day moving average of new cases to an almost three-month high. read more

* Health Minister Roberto Speranza on Monday said it will be possible for the Italians to receive a COVID-19 vaccine booster five months after completing the first vaccination cycle. read more

* President Emmanuel Macron said violence in Guadeloupe over COVID-19 restrictions had created a “very explosive” situation, as a general strike entered a second week on Monday.

* The European Union’s drug regulator said it was evaluating data on booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by Johnson & Johnson and a decision could come “within weeks” under a speedy review. read more

* Britain will review its COVID travel rules in January and is looking at reforming its airport slots system as part of a wider new aviation strategy, minister Robert Courts said. read more

AMERICAS

* Canada is ending its pandemic-era policy of turning back asylum-seekers trying to cross into the country between ports of entry, according to a revised policy document released on Sunday. read more

* The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Monday advised against travel to Germany and Denmark because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases in those countries. read more

ASIA-PACIFIC

* The resumption of India supplying COVID-19 vaccines to the global COVAX vaccine-sharing platform after eight months was delayed on Monday when Nepal requested a postponement, two sources told Reuters. read more

* The IMF will audit $1.4 billion of additional funding it gave Pakistan in April 2020 to help the economy through the COVID-19 shock, the Pakistan government’s finance adviser Shaukat Tarin said.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* A Kenyan government directive that residents must show proof of COVID-19 vaccination by Dec. 21 to access services was welcomed by some businesses on Monday but criticized by others, who said low vaccination rates made it unrealistic. read more

* Israel began rolling out Pfizer/BioNtech COVID-19 vaccinations for 5-to-11-year-olds on Monday.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

* Pfizer (PFE.N) said its vaccine provided strong long-term protection against the virus in a late-stage study conducted among adolescents aged 12 to 15 years. read more

ECONOMIC IMPACT

* Wall Street shares rose to record levels on Monday and European stocks turned higher after U.S. President Joe Biden picked Jerome Powell to continue as Federal Reserve chair, in a move welcomed as a signal of stability by global investors.

Compiled by Amy Caren Daniel; Editing by Anil D’Silva

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.