Coronavirus Global Updates, Mar 12 :::: Thailand Suspends Astra Shots; Biden Vaccine Order and Russia Wants to Vaccinate 1 in 10 on Planet

Fri Mar 12 10:15:51 CAT 2021

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Coronavirus Global Updates, Mar 12 :::: Thailand Suspends Astra Shots; Biden Vaccine Order and  Russia Wants to Vaccinate 1 in 10 on Planet

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Zimbabwe COVID19 Update

COVID-19 update: As at 11 March 2021, Zimbabwe had 36 377 confirmed cases, including 33 972 recoveries and 1 492 deaths. To date, a total of 36 019 front line workers have been vaccinated.  

Thailand Suspends Astra Shots; Biden Vaccine Order: Virus Update

President Joe Biden  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-11/biden-to-order-all-u-s-adults-be-eligible-for-vaccine-by-may-1> directed states to make all U.S. adults eligible for coronavirus vaccinations by May 1, accelerating efforts to end the pandemic. His administration would reach his goal of 100 million shots in his first 100 days in office by his 60th day as president, he said in an address. He earlier  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-11/biden-to-sign-1-9-trillion-bill-thursday-speeding-up-enactment> signed the $1.9 trillion pandemic-relief bill.

Thailand will temporarily halt use of AstraZeneca Plc’s vaccine until there’s more clarity from investigations of possible blood clots. The European Union’s drugs regulator said the  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-11/denmark-suspends-astrazeneca-vaccine-over-blood-clots-concerns-km4q8s90> benefits outweigh the risks as some European nations, including Denmark, Italy and Norway, also temporarily suspend some or all use. Australia, the Philippines and Vietnam see no reason to stop the rollout.

New York state will no longer require  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QPT8IODWLU6C> domestic travelers to quarantine, though rules remain in place for international visitors. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says Auckland moves to alert level 1 at midday Friday, meaning social distancing requirements will be  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QPTTH2T1UM0W> lifted.

 <https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/covid-vaccine-tracker-global-distribution/> 

Biden Promises Virus ‘War Footing’ 
President Joe Biden offered Americans a glimpse of hope that life would begin to return to normal this summer as he marked a year of U.S. shutdowns and death, ordering a further acceleration of efforts to end the pandemic.

In his first prime-time address to the country since his inauguration, the president directed states to make all U.S. adults eligible for vaccinations by May 1, and he said his administration would reach his goal of 100 million shots in his first 100 days in office by his 60th day as president.

Biden said the U.S. must beat the virus to get the economy back on track and that children may have been set back a year or more by the pandemic. He said people will be able to get the vaccines in pharmacies “just like you get your flu shot,” but warned that things may get worse again as new variants spread.

He urged Americans to get a vaccine when they can -- a nod to the unknown number who are hesitant or don’t plan do. “I need you to get vaccinated when it’s your turn and when you can find an opportunity,” he said. He offered an incentive, saying it’ll be safe to have small July 4th holiday gatherings if things don’t regress. He pleaded with Americans to not let up and to stick with mitigation measures, like masks.

Germany Won’t Get J&J Shot Before Mid-April 
Germany won’t receive deliveries of Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine until mid or late April at the earliest, according to Health Minister Jens Spahn.

“We of course want to know the exact reason for that, why other countries are getting deliveries,” Spahn said late Thursday in an interview with ARD television, adding that Germany has asked the European Commission to speak “very clearly” with the company.

Spahn also criticized the U.S. for blocking exports of vaccines and Covid tests. “We have seen this repeatedly over the past 12 months that certain products haven’t left the U.S. and I find that problematic for the transatlantic partnership,” he said. “We need to talk about this.”

Russia Wants to Vaccinate 1 in 10 on Planet 
Russia is  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-12/russia-wants-to-vaccinate-nearly-1-in-10-on-the-planet-this-year> ramping up overseas output of its Covid-19 vaccine, pledging to supply shots to almost one in 10 people on the planet this year even as it’s produced only a tiny fraction of that so far.

“We have capacity to provide the vaccine to 700 million people outside Russia this year,” Kirill Dmitriev, chief executive officer of state-run Russian Direct Investment Fund, which backed Sputnik V’s development and is in charge of its foreign roll-out, said in an interview Wednesday. “The biggest producers will be India, China and South Korea.”

Russia’s success in persuading so far around 50 countries to approve the shot has bolstered its global ambitions, with several million doses already delivered to Latin America led by Argentina and Mexico.

Australia Backs AstraZeneca Vaccine 
Australia won’t pause the rollout of AstraZeneca Plc’s Covid-19 vaccine, even as some European countries temporarily suspend use of the shots while possible blood clots are investigated.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Friday that health authorities had not raised any concerns about the vaccine and would continue to monitor developments overseas. Officials spoke with the European Medicines Agency overnight, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported.

Thailand Suspends Use of AstraZeneca Shots 
Thailand’s Health Ministry  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-12/thai-premier-delays-astrazeneca-shot-after-suspensions-in-europe> said that the nation would temporarily halt the use of AstraZeneca Plc vaccines until there’s more clarity from the investigations of possible blood clots.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha and some of his cabinet members who were scheduled to get their AstraZeneca shots on Friday, have postponed their appointments after suspensions of the vaccine in some European countries, including in Denmark, Italy and Norway.

Vietnam Will Continue AstraZeneca Vaccinations 
Vietnam will continue conducting AstraZeneca vaccinations, VnExpress news website reported, citing Dang Duc Anh, head of the National Expanded Immunization Project.

There have been no blood clots among people who have been vaccinated in Vietnam, according to VnExpress, which quoted Anh, who is also director of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology.

Sanofi, Translate Bio Start Human Trial 
The phase 1-2 study will assess safety, immune response and reactogenicity to the vaccine, after preclinical data showed high neutralizing antibody levels, Sanofi and Translate said in a statement.

The study expects to enroll 415 participants 18 and older at 13 sites; interim results expected in Q3 2021. It will evaluate MRT5500, an mRNA vaccine candidate. Participants will get one dose of MRT5500 or two 21 days apart.

Singapore Sees Travel Corridors for Vaccinated 
Bilateral travel corridors for vaccinated passengers from countries with low to moderate infection rates may happen in the second half of this year, Singapore Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung says in a radio interview with Money FM 89.3

Ong  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QPUCI1DWLU6J> suggests that Singapore could open to travelers from places with moderate Covid-19 infection rates but that have ongoing vaccination programs and combine those efforts with testing regimes to establish safe corridors

Hong Kong Outbreak Ensnares Expats 
Concern spread among Hong Kong’s business and expatriate community as a coronavirus outbreak linked to a gym widened and hundreds of people were taken to government centers for lengthy stays in quarantine.

While the cluster is smaller than previous flareups such as one linked to dance halls in November, it has engulfed a tightly-knit world of mostly Western expatriates who work for global financial institutions and whose children attend international schools with annual fees of HK$250,000 ($32,000) or more.

South Korea to Extend Social Distancing Rules
South Korea will extend social distancing rules, including bans on gatherings of five or more people, for another two weeks as daily virus cases still hover around 300-400, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said in a meeting on Friday.

Chung said it is very worrisome that the third wave of infections which began in the greater Seoul area, where more than half of the Korean people live, hasn’t been controlled and the spread is continuing.

China to Pay for Olympians’ Vaccines 
China has entered into an agreement with the International Olympics Committee to pay for vaccines for athletes in the games in Tokyo and Beijing.

“We are grateful for this offer, which is in the true Olympic spirit of solidarity,” IOC president Thomas Bach said on Thursday, according to the Associated Press. China’s participation in the games has been  <https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2020-09-25/should-america-boycott-china-s-2022-winter-olympics> criticized by activists protesting its treatment of the Uighur population in Xinjiang and pro-democracy forces in Hong Kong, with some governments calling for a boycott of the games in Beijing.

New Zealand Lifts Auckland Curbs 
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says Auckland will move to alert level 1 at midday Friday, meaning social distancing requirements will be  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QPTTH2T1UM0W> lifted.

The outbreak in the city has been contained and it has been 14 days since the last exposure event, Ardern said at a news conference Friday.

Portugal Begins Gradual Easing 
Portugal plans to open nursery schools on March 15 as the government starts to  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QPTNEHDWRGG0> gradually ease confinement measures adopted to contain one of the world’s worst outbreaks, Prime Minister Antonio Costa said.

People will continue to have a duty to stay at home until the Easter holiday weekend, and remote working will remain mandatory when possible, Costa said at a press conference on Thursday. Controls on the land border with Spain will also remain in place for now. Secondary schools and restaurants will be able to open from April 19, the prime minister said.

EU Regulator Says Astra Shot Safe
The European Union’s drugs regulator said the  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-11/denmark-suspends-astrazeneca-vaccine-over-blood-clots-concerns-km4q8s90> benefits of AstraZeneca Plc’s Covid-19 vaccine continue to outweigh the risks, and the shot can still be administered while investigations of possible blood clots are ongoing.

The European Medicines Agency reiterated that there is currently no indication that the Astra vaccine caused these conditions, which aren’t listed as side effects. The EMA issued the statement as Denmark, Italy and Norway joined other European countries in temporarily suspending use of some or all of their Astra Covid shots. The regulator is investigating the concerns.

Paris Spread ‘Worrying’ 
One year after Europe first locked down, French authorities are fighting to avoid imposing new restrictions on Paris to curb the spread of Covid-19.

“The pandemic is particularly  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-11/spread-of-covid-remains-worrying-in-paris-health-minister-says> worrying in the Paris region,” French Health Minister Olivier Veran told a weekly briefing in Paris on Thursday. The virus spreading at a pace of 350 cases per 100,000 inhabitants weekly, he said.

Astra Deliveries to EU Cut in Half 
AstraZeneca Plc will deliver  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-11/astra-may-deliver-less-than-half-the-vaccines-eu-expects-by-june> less than half the planned number of Covid-19 vaccines to the European Union in the second quarter after attempts to tap the company’s global supply chain were unsuccessful.

The pharmaceutical giant will deliver about 76 million out of a planned 180 million doses to the bloc in the three-month period through June, according to data based on delivery projections for one member state seen by Bloomberg. The national figures were extrapolated to the EU level based on the European Commission’s methodology for distributing supplies.

N.Y. Eases Traveler Quarantine 
Domestic travelers will no longer be required to quarantine after entering New York from another U.S. state or territory beginning April 1, Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a statement. The state still recommends quarantine after domestic travel as precaution. Mandatory quarantine remains in effect for international travelers.

Millions of Vaccines in EU Unused 
More than 11.5 million Covid vaccine doses that have been delivered to European Union countries  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-11/more-than-11-5-million-covid-vaccine-shots-waiting-on-eu-shelves> have not yet been used, official figures showed. The number of shots sent by manufacturers now totals 54.2 million, compared to 46 million a week previously. The data covers the week to March 7.

According to the ECDC, 8.2% of adults have received one shot of vaccine, a rise from 6.5% over the week, with 3.7% being fully vaccinated, up from 3.1%.

INVESTORS DIARY 2021

Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

Old Mutual

analysts briefing

24/03/21 | 2:30pm

Willdale

AGM

Boardroom, Willdale Administration Block, Teneriffe, 19.5km peg Lomagundi Road, Mt Hampden

25/03/21 | 11am

TSL

AGM

Virtual |  <https://eagm.creg.co.zw/eagmzim/> https://eagm.creg.co.zw/eagmzim/ Login.aspx | in the Auditorium, Ground Floor, 28 Simon Mazorodze Road, Southerton

25/03/21 | 12pm

CFI

AGM

Farm & City Boardroom, 1st Floor Farm & City Complex, 1 Wynne Street

31/03/21 | 11am

Good Friday

02/04/21

Easter Sunday

04/04/21

Easter Monday

05/04/21

Independence Day

18/04/21

Public Holiday in lieu of Independence Day falling on a Sunday

19/04/21

Companies under Cautionary

ART

PPC

Dairibord

Starafrica

Fidelity

Turnall

Medtech

Zimre

Nampak Zimbabwe

DISCLAIMER: This report has been prepared by Bulls ‘n Bears, a division of Faith Capital (Pvt) Ltd for general information purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or subscribe for any securities. The information contained in this report has been compiled from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation or warranty is made or guarantee given as to its accuracy or completeness. All opinions expressed and recommendations made are subject to change without notice. Securities or financial instruments mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors. Securities of emerging and mid-size growth companies typically involve a higher degree of risk and more volatility than the securities of more established companies. Neither Faith Capital nor any other member of Bulls ‘n Bears nor any other person, accepts any liability whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from any use of this report or its contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. Recipients of this report shall be solely responsible for making their own independent investigation into the business, financial condition and future prospects of any companies referred to in this report. Other  Indices quoted herein are for guideline purposes only and sourced from third parties.

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