(Bloomberg) — The premier of Canada’s biggest province declared a state of emergency, warning protesters choking off traffic at a key U.S. border crossing they face stiff punishment if they don’t leave.
Protesters in France, inspired by Canada’s demonstrations, began driving toward Paris to attempt to block the capital.
About 4,000 unvaccinated New York City employees, including police officers, teachers and firefighters, face termination Friday. Amazon.com Inc. is lifting mask requirements for fully vaccinated warehouse workers.
Hong Kong and Chinese authorities will hold a meeting this weekend to discuss ways to stem the city’s ballooning outbreak. Authorities reported a record 1,325 new cases and extended a flight ban on eight countries.
Key Developments:
- Virus Tracker: Cases top 406.9 million; deaths pass 5.79 million
- Vaccine Tracker: More than 10.3 billion shots administered
- Mask guidelines around U.S. ease, bringing confusion and relief
- Wall Street bosses push ‘live with it’ mindset in office return
- Hong Kong risks everything with ‘impossible’ Covid-zero goal
- Why China is sticking with its Covid-zero strategy: QuickTake
Belgium to Lift Most Restrictions (11:40 a.m. NY)
Belgium agreed to loosen most of the virus restrictions it introduced late last year now that all but one of the indicators used to monitor the surge of the omicron variant show that the outbreak is past its peak.
Starting on Feb. 18, the requirement to work from home four days a week will disappear and become a recommendation, Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said Friday. At that time, nightclubs will also reopen, pubs and restaurants won’t face a mandatory closing hour or table limits, and a ban on events with moving crowds will subside, along with the obligation for children younger than 12 to wear masks.
Judge Blocks Biden Contractor Mandate (11:38 a.m. NY)
An Arizona judge issued a final judgment in a challenge to President Joe Biden’s executive order requiring Covid-19 vaccines for federal contractor workers, shielding the state’s employees and companies that do business with the government from the mandate.
Judge Michael Liburdi of the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona in Phoenix on Thursday granted a permanent injunction against the executive order, after a previous order from January that temporarily blocked its enforcement and didn’t define its full scope. Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich sued over the vaccine requirement, saying it exceeded the scope of executive power.
The mandate, which was set to take effect in January, would apply to federal contractors — roughly a fifth of the U.S. workforce — and includes companies such as Lockheed Martin Corp., Microsoft Corp., Alphabet Inc.‘s Google, and General Motors Co.
Dutch Nightclubs to Defy Restrictions (11:15 a.m. NY)
Nightclubs in the Netherlands are planning to open their doors to the public on Saturday night in defiance of Covid-19 restrictions.
“The Night Rises” campaign was launched to protest government rules that force bars, clubs and cafes to shut at 10 p.m. Clubs taking part in the movement are estimated to have sold around 20,000 tickets, according to Dutch news agency ANP.
Ontario Declares Emergency Over Protests (10:59 a.m. NY)
The premier of Canada’s biggest province declared a state of emergency, warning protesters choking off traffic at a key U.S. border crossing they face stiff punishment if they don’t leave.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford, in a news conference Friday alongside his solicitor general, said the government is enacting new powers to end the blockade, including issuing fines of up to C$100,000 ($78,800) and jail time.
“We will also provide additional authority to consider taking away the personal and commercial licenses of anyone who doesn’t comply with these orders.,” Ford said, according to prepared remarks.
Pandemic End ‘in Our Hands,’ WHO Chief Says (10:45 a.m. NY)
The director-general of the World Health Organization said he expects the acute phase of the pandemic to end this year on condition that about 70% of the global population are vaccinated by June or July.
“It’s in our hands,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters in Cape Town, South Africa. “We will continue to play hide and seek with this virus” if people don’t get inoculated and there is a risk that new Covid-19 variants will emerge.
NYC’s Unvaccinated Workers Face Firing (10:31 a.m. NY)
About 4,000 unvaccinated New York City employees, including police officers, teachers and firefighters, face termination Friday.
Jobs are at risk for about 3,000 workers who took unpaid leave instead of getting vaccinated when the city’s mandate took effect in October, as well as about 1,000 recent hires who haven’t submitted documentation of their second shots. About 95% of the 370,000 city workers have received at least one dose.
Amazon Eases Mask Rules (10:27 a.m. NY)
Amazon.com Inc. is lifting mask requirements for fully vaccinated warehouse workers and adjusting its paid leave policy, a return to normalcy as U.S. states relax Covid-19 restrictions.
The world’s largest online retailer said workers can start going maskless on Friday, “where permitted by local regulations.” Amazon also said that, starting March 18, workers who test positive for the coronavirus must have received two shots of the vaccine to receive paid sick leave. The company spent billions of dollars during the pandemic to help Covid-proof its U.S. facilities.
Brazil Receives Another 1.3m Pfizer Doses (9:16 a.m. NY)
Brazil Health Ministry received 1.3 million doses of Pfizer’s vaccine against Covid-19 aimed at the target audience over 12 years-old this Friday, according to statement.
Botswana Mandates Vaccines for Visitors (8:35 a.m. NY)
Starting Feb. 14, all travelers who arrive in Botswana will be required to be fully vaccinated, Health Minister Edwin Dikoloti said in televised briefing.
Those partially inoculated will be required to produce negative PCR tests valid for 72 hours. The government will offer free vaccination for arrivals.
French ‘Freedom Convoys’ Head to Paris (6:31 a.m. NY)
Protesters against France’s Covid-19 vaccine passes began driving toward Paris on Friday to attempt to block the capital, inspired by “freedom convoys” that began in Canada.
On Facebook and Telegram, people shared videos of cars setting off from across the country, including Strasbourg, in the east, Brittany, in the west, the region around Lille, in the north, and Lyon, south of Paris.
South Africa Extends Final State of Disaster (6:12 a.m. NY)
Cabinet approved the final extension of the national state of disaster to March 15, according to a statement released on Friday by South Africa’s Ministry in the Presidency.
EU Studies Vaccines’ Affect on Women’s Periods (6:23 p.m. HK)
Europe’s drug regulator will revisit evidence linking Covid-19 immunization to changes in women’s menstrual cycles after an earlier agency analysis ruled out an association.
Reports of delayed periods or heavy bleeding in women who received shots from Moderna Inc. and the partners Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE prompted the European Medicines Agency to conduct further assessments of the risk, the regulator said Friday.
Indonesia Adds Most Deaths Since September (5:57 p.m. HK)
Indonesia reported 100 deaths from Covid-19 in a day, the highest since September, as the jump in cases starts to send more people to hospitals.
The government is grappling with a surge in cases as the more transmissible omicron variant spreads through the country, with 40,489 new infections reported on Friday. Fatalities are starting to catch up along with hospitalizations. More than 50% of beds dedicated for the pandemic handling are filled with patients in Jakarta and Bali, from as low as 2% at the end of last year.
Hong Kong Cases Top 1,000 (5:50 p.m. HK)
Hong Kong reported another record number of coronavirus cases, as well as two more deaths, with the worsening outbreak straining health-care resources and ramping up pressure on the government’s steadfast push for Covid Zero.
Authorities announced 1,325 infections on Friday, alongside more than 1,500 preliminary positive cases. That’s up from just 614 on Monday. The city said it would extend flight bans on eight countries including the U.S., U.K., and Australia to March 4, and added Nepal to the group as well.
Germany Looks to Ease Pandemic Curbs (5:35 p.m. HK)
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany could loosen some pandemic restrictions next week as the country’s outbreak shows signs of peaking.
While contagion rates are continuing to post records on a daily basis, the pace of the increases have slowed. Meanwhile, Covid-19 cases in intensive-care facilities are less than half the level in early December. That’s prompted calls for easing curbs.
Czech Republic Cases Slow (5:22 p.m. HK)
The Czech Republic reported 22,663 new cases of Covid-19 in 24 hours through Thursday, the lowest weekday number in more than three weeks. The nation of 10.7 million had 3,708 patients with Covid-19 in hospitals, according to the health ministry data.
Spain Eases Curbs for Teenage Tourists (4:57 p.m. HK)
Spain eased Covid-19 rules for teenage holidaymakers from countries outside of the European Union such as the U.K., giving a boost to the tourism industry in the Canary Islands and other winter sun destinations.
From Feb. 14, foreign visitors aged 12-17 from non-EU countries who don’t have a valid vaccination certificate can enter Spain if they can show a negative PCR or similar Covid-19 test taken 72 hours before arrival, the industry, trade and tourism ministry said in a statement.
Gatwick to Reopen South Terminal (2:39 p.m. HK)
London’s Gatwick Airport will reopen its South Terminal after almost two years as British Airways’ short-haul routes return, alongside increased operations from easyJet, Wizz and Vueling, according to an emailed statement.
Gatwick and its partners have been running ongoing recruitment campaigns, with more than 2,000 new posts still available to help meet “expected strong demand.”
European airlines are counting on a bumper summer season driven by pent-up demand after a two-year downturn in travel caused by the Covid outbreak.
Hong Kong Seeks China’s Help (12:07 p.m. HK)
Hong Kong and mainland authorities will hold a meeting during the weekend to discuss ways to boost the city’s capabilities against Covid-19, Hong Kong Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan told a legislative council meeting. Chan said the city is also considering sending low-risk and asymptomatic patients to hotels for isolation.
Earlier, local media reported that Hong Kong officials would visit Shenzhen this weekend to request help in tackling the outbreak, including securing personnel from the mainland to triple testing capacity to at least 600,000 a day.
Hong Kong is also looking to build another makeshift isolation and medical facility and move all preliminary positive cases — who are currently isolated at home — to the new venue as soon as possible, the reports said. Hong Kong’s existing isolation facility in AsiaWorld-Expo is full, partly due to groups of elderly home residents being isolated to avoid cluster outbreaks in nursing homes.
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