(Bloomberg) — The European Commission approved a contract to buy as many as 60 million doses of Valneva SE’s experimental Covid-19 vaccine — a shot that elicited better immunity than AstraZeneca Plc’s in a clinical trial.
A fourth Covid-19 wave is spreading in Germany, with a record number of new cases. The country’s vaccine commission recommended that people under 30 and pregnant women receive Pfizer Inc.’s vaccine for first doses or boosters rather than Moderna Inc.’s.
China is taking its extreme containment measures a step further, warning that the virus could be transmitted on parcels. The Czech Republic is debating curbs amid surging infections but Premier Andrej Babis ruled out lockdowns.
Key Developments:
- Virus Tracker: Cases top 250.8 million; deaths above 5.06 million
- Vaccine Tracker: More than 7.32 billion shots given
- With Covid vaccines, do we always need masks?: Opinion Wrap
- Long Covid’s scary, potentially lifelong consequences
- Pandemic blows up old business habits, opening path to boom
- Why are cases rising across Europe? It’s complicated
- Vaccine mandates are essential to stopping Covid-19: Editorial
EU to Buy Up to 60 Million Valneva Shots (6:40 a.m. NY)
The European Commission approved a contract to buy as many as 60 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine Valneva SE is developing, sending shares of the French firm soaring.
The agreement would allow EU members to purchase almost 27 million doses from Valneva in 2022, and an additional 33 million in 2023, the commission said in a statement. The shot has yet to be approved by the bloc’s medicines regulator.
Czech Republic Debates Curbs Amid Surge (6:51 p.m. HK)
The Czech Republic recorded a steep rise in new infections, which came close to a record at 14,539 new cases. The number of people hospitalized with Covid almost doubled since the end of October, according to health-care ministry data. Premier Andrej Babis called the situation “not good” and said that the government will debate curbs. He ruled out lockdowns.
Croatia reported a new high in daily infections and the Ukraine continued to struggle to contain its outbreak, with lines in Kyiv for death certificates and hospital beds for Covid patients at 73% occupancy.
S. Africa Doctors Push for Booster Choice (5:53 p.m. HK)
South Africa’s Medical Association, which represents doctors, said there must must be a choice of booster vaccine after Johnson & Johnson won the right to run research on the half a million health workers who took the company’s shot in an initial study. The government said offering a choice would delay the process. The head of the South African Medical Research Council, which is overseeing the trial, said the intervention wasn’t based on evidence and could create a “vaccine apartheid.”
China Suspects Clothing Deliveries in Covid Spread (4:43 p.m. HK)
China is taking its extreme containment measures a step further, warning that the virus could be transmitted on parcels just as the country’s biggest annual online shopping festival looms.
After three workers at a children’s clothing maker in the northeastern Hebei province were found to have Covid, authorities more than 1,200 miles away ordered people who had received — or even just handled — parcels from the company to get tested. The health commission in Guangxi, in China’s southeast, described the situation as a “Covid-related mail chain.”
Back in Hebei, which surrounds Beijing, officials have tested 300 packages of clothing from the company, Haohui Ecommerce Co., and halted parcel-delivery services in two cities — Xinji and Jinzhou — as well as the town of Shenze. All the tests came back negative.
Germany Leans Toward Homegrown Shot (4:10 p.m. HK)
Germany’s vaccine commission recommended that people under 30 and pregnant women receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for first doses or boosters rather than the Moderna shot.
The rare heart-inflammation side effects appear more frequent with the Moderna shot in younger patients, and while there’s no comparable data for pregnant women, the group advised the Pfizer-BioNTech shot out of caution.
Malaysia, Indonesia to Start Travel Lanes (4:08 p.m. HK)
Malaysia and Indonesia plan to allow fully-vaccinated travelers to fly between the two nations, just days after a similar agreement was struck in one of the world’s busiest air routes.
The Southeast Asian neighbors may start vaccinated travel lanes from Kuala Lumpur International Airport to Jakarta and Bali. They aim to finalize and implement the plan early next year.
Indian Cases and Deaths Edge Higher (3 p.m. HK)
India added 11,466 cases on Wednesday, pushing the overall tally to 34.4 million, while Covid-related deaths rose by 460 in a day to 461,849, latest data from the health ministry show. The country has administered 1.1 billion doses.
As many as 96 countries, including the U.S., U.K., Canada and Germany, have agreed to recognize India’s Covid vaccination certificates in a move that will boost international travel, the health minister said.
H.K. Raises Covid Risk Level for New Zealand (12:27 p.m. HK)
Hong Kong raised the Covid risk level for New Zealand to medium from low with effect from Nov. 17, according to a government statement.
“The number of confirmed cases there has been increasing,” a government spokesman said. “As the risk of the importation of cases has heightened, we have to tighten the quarantine requirements.” New Zealand’s authorities have announced they will pursue a policy of “living with the virus” rather than try to tamp it down completely.
U.S. Group Urges More Jabs to Vietnam (10:32 a.m. HK)
The American Apparel & Footwear Association, which represents more than 1,000 brands, urged the Biden administration to step up vaccine donations to Vietnam after the U.S. gave the country 15 million doses, said Stephen Lamar, the group’s president and CEO.
Vaccinations are critical for Vietnam, the second-largest supplier of apparel, footwear and travel goods to the U.S. after China, to instill confidence in workers to return to factories, he said.
Pouyuen Vietnam, a unit of one of the world’s largest makers of athletic shoes, is struggling to meet orders after 6% of its workforce quit amid the nation’s worst virus outbreak, according to a post on the Ho Chi Minh City Communist Party Committee’s website.
Colorado Activates Hospital Crisis Plan (8:24 a.m. HK)
Citing burnout and dwindling ranks of workers, Colorado has activated a “crisis standards of care” hospital staffing plan giving the health care industry broad authority to fill personnel gaps as Covid cases surge, officials said.
The plan allows for such things as “just in time” training for employees to assume responsibilities beyond their normal role and level of certification, according to the state Department of Public Health and Environment.
“Staff shortages due to Covid-19 illness, increased workloads due to hospitals working at capacity, and staff burnout are all making working conditions difficult and often outside the scope of conventional care,” it said.
French Seniors Need Boosters for Health Pass (4:30 a.m. HK)
People in France over the age of 65 will have to get a booster shot to remain eligible for a vaccine passport needed to gain access to restaurants, museums, long-distance trains and other public places, President Emmanuel Macron said in a televised speech. The new rule takes effect on Dec. 15. Infections are rising in France and other European countries.
Fauci Seeks to Prevent Winter Surge (1:20 p.m. NY)
Stepping up the rate of vaccinations and boosters can help avoid a holiday surge in new cases that have dropped to a plateau of about 70,000 a day, White House medical adviser Anthony Fauci said.
While hospitalizations and deaths have fallen in the U.S., it’s far too early to pull back on mitigation measures such as mask-wearing, Fauci said in an interview on Bloomberg Television’s “Balance of Power with David Westin.”
“If we get the overwhelming proportion of unvaccinated people vaccinated, and we get those who are vaccinated and eligible to get a booster,” Fauci said, “we can go a long way to preventing a new surge as we go into the winter.”
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
