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 23 (Reuters) – Germany should impose further restrictions, the outgoing health minister said, as more politicians backed the idea of compulsory vaccinations.

Joachim Sauer, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s husband, has blamed his compatriots’ “laziness and complacency” for Germany’s comparatively low vaccination rate. 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

* The World Health Organization (WHO) said there could be a further 700,000 deaths from COVID-19 in Europe by March, taking the total to above 2.2 million.

* The Czech Republic may make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for people over the age of 60 as well as for some professions including health and social care workers, under plans now being drawn up, the prime minister said. read more

* The Netherlands started transporting COVID-19 patients across the border to Germany to ease pressure on its hospitals, which are scaling back regular care to deal with a surge in infections. read more

* The local government body for Martinique confirmed police had faced gunfire from protesters, as civil unrest broke out during protests against COVID-19 protocols. In Guadeloupe, the situation remains “very difficult,” the French interior minister said.

* Ukraine has extended its contract with Pfizer (PFE.N) for 2022-23 and will receive 25 million COVID-19 vaccine doses annually, the health minister said. read more

* Austria’s lockdown will have a “very small” effect on economic output this year, but the current wave of cases will probably inflict damage next year, the head of a top economic think-tank said. read more

AMERICAS

* Mexico will look into administering booster vaccine doses, especially for older people, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said. read more

* The U.S. government asked a federal appeals court to immediately lift a court-ordered stay on a sweeping workplace COVID-19 vaccine rule to avoid “enormous” harm to public health, or alternatively to allow a masking-and-testing requirement, according to a court filing.

* The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the State Department on Monday advised against travel to Germany and Denmark because of a rising number of cases. read more

ASIA-PACIFIC

* South Korea’s finance minister said the government will use part of excess tax revenue collected this year to aid small businesses hurt by measures to contain COVID-19 outbreaks, while the country is expected to set another record daily case count, Yonhap news agency reported. read more

* Thailand ordered an additional 30 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech (22UAy.DE) vaccine, government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said, with delivery expected to begin in the first quarter of next year. read more

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* Since the pandemic forced many U.S. bookshops to close or slash prices, Ghanaian New Yorker Paul Ninson has amassed 30,000 African photo books for a library he hopes will inspire the next generation of photographers back home.

* The International Monetary Fund said on Monday the Algeria economy is gradually recovering from COVID-19 and oil shocks in 2020, after its executive board concluded the 2021 Article IV consultations with the North African country. read more

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

* A global licence for serological technology that detects COVID-19 antibodies will be provided royalty-free to poor and middle-income countries under a first of its kind agreement to boost production, the WHO said. read more

ECONOMIC IMPACT

* Stock markets fell and the dollar held near a 16-month high as investors positioned for interest rate hikes in 2022 after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell was nominated for a second term.

* European airlines are in for a fraught period between now and the end of the year due to renewed COVID-19 concerns that will disrupt Christmas travel and early summer holiday bookings, Ryanair Group’s (RYA.I) chief executive officer said.

Compiled by Juliette Portala and Federico Maccioni; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Bill Berkrot

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