Coronavirus Global Updates, Mar 19 :::: EU Seeks to Reset Vaccine Drive; German Cases Jump

Fri Mar 19 12:37:30 CAT 2021

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Coronavirus Global Updates, Mar 19 :::: EU Seeks to Reset Vaccine Drive; German Cases Jump

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Zimbabwe COVID19 Update

COVID-19 update: As at 18 March 2021, Zimbabwe had 36 611 confirmed cases, including 34 226 recoveries and 1 509 deaths. To date, a total of 40 002 front line workers have been vaccinated. 

EU Seeks to Reset Vaccine Drive; German Cases Jump: Virus Update

The European Union has a chance to put its Covid-19 inoculation push back on track after a chaotic week that’s ended with its medicines regulator lifting a suspension of vaccines made by AstraZeneca Plc.

While most nations in the bloc, including Germany, France, Italy, will  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-19/eu-seeks-to-reset-vaccine-drive-after-reversing-astrazeneca-ban> restart administering the shots, Scandinavian countries will wait for a green light from  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-19/astra-s-ema-endorsement-isn-t-good-enough-for-scandinavia> local regulators on the risk of side effects. Cases in Germany rose by the most in two months, just days before Chancellor Angela Merkel decides on how to proceed with the country’s lockdown restrictions.

President Joe Biden announced the U.S. on Friday will clinch his goal of administering  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-18/biden-says-u-s-to-meet-100-million-shot-goal-six-weeks-early> 100 million Covid-19 vaccine shots in the first 100 days of his presidency, reaching the mark six weeks ahead of time. More U.S. states announced all adults would be eligible for the vaccine before Biden’s May 1 target.

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

Scandinavia Stays Cautious on Astra Shot 
The European Medicines Agency’s assertion that AstraZeneca Plc’s vaccine is safe and effective  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-19/astra-s-ema-endorsement-isn-t-good-enough-for-scandinavia> fell flat in Scandinavia, where countries are keeping the company on hold until local authorities complete their own reviews.

Sweden, Denmark and Norway put out statements shortly after the EMA’s reassurances were made public late on Thursday. All three said they expect to make a decision next week, pending the outcome of national reviews of Astra’s vaccine.

ImmunityBio to Produce Shot in South Africa 
ImmunityBio Inc. will have its first Covid-19 vaccine made in South Africa by The Biovac Institute, a partly state-owned company, once regulators approve it.

ImmunityBio’s vaccine, which is in phase 1 trials in South Africa and the U.S., uses a cold germ, known as adenovirus 5, to act against the coronavirus.

EU Seeks to Reset Vaccine Campaign 
The European Union has a chance to put its Covid-19 inoculation push  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-19/eu-seeks-to-reset-vaccine-drive-after-reversing-astrazeneca-ban> back on track after a chaotic week of vaccine suspensions, health scares and export-ban threats that sacrificed precious time.

Armed with an all-clear for AstraZeneca Plc’s vaccine from EU regulators, European leaders must get a grip on a vaccine drive that’s lagging the U.S. and the U.K. and potentially delaying an economic recovery. The rising pace of cases and a renewed four-week lockdown in parts of France underscore the urgency of the threat.

Hungary Extends Virus Lockdown 
Hungary will extend its coronavirus lockdown for at least another week from Monday after daily Covid-19 deaths rose to another record, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.

German Cases Soar to Two-Month High 
Germany’s coronavirus cases rose by the most in two months, just days before Chancellor Angela Merkel decides on how to proceed with the country’s lockdown restrictions. The number of new cases jumped by 28,489 in the 24 hours through Friday morning, the most since Jan. 21 according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The country’s seven-day incidence rate per 100,000 people climbed to 95.6, the highest in more than a month and close to the level that triggers an “emergency brake” at which regional restrictions need to be reimposed. Merkel and regional leaders are due to meet Monday to decide on the next steps in the fight against the pandemic. Germany’s remaining lockdown restrictions expire on March 28.

Tokyo Disneyland To Double Number of Visitors 
Oriental Land will  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ7E7SDWX2PS> double the number of visitors allowed in to both Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea to 10,000 once the virus state of emergency is lifted Sunday.

Indonesia Lifts Restrictions on AstraZeneca
Indonesia has  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ7ERVDWX2PT> lifted a suspension on AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine and plans to start distributing it next week, while the government will  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ7DN6DWX2PT> expand the current movement restrictions to five provinces to further bring down number of positive cases and deaths.

India Has Most New Cases Since November 
India added almost  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ77HDDWRGG8> 40,000 new cases Friday -- the highest one-day jump since end of November -- pushing the overall tally past 11.5 million, according to the health ministry data. New cases have nearly doubled in a week as the third-worst hit nation scrambles to contain another wave of infections that may  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-25/india-looks-set-to-beat-recession-even-as-new-virus-cases-loom> undermine a recent economic recovery. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said earlier this week that the country  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ3XK1DWLU6U> needs to increase testing and tracing to arrest this sharp spike. India imposed the world’s  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-12/india-company-profits-rebound-after-the-world-s-biggest-lockdown> biggest lockdown in March last year, pushing  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-05-27/world-s-biggest-lockdown-to-push-12-million-into-extreme-poverty> millions deeper in poverty and hobbling the local economy. Deaths rose to 159,370 as of Friday while a little  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ77FUDWLU6D> over 39 million Covid-19 vaccines have been administered.

Meanwhile, the Serum Institute of India is  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ7E5FDWX2PS> planning to expand capacity by end April or early May with an aim to increase vaccine production by another 40m-50m doses, CNBC reports.

EU Faces Uphill Battle for Summer Travel Pass 
The European Union faces  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-19/eu-plan-for-covid-travel-pass-by-summer-seen-as-tall-order> a tough task in seeking to introduce so-called Covid-19 passports by June to get people traveling again, according to the owner of France’s busiest airport.

Thailand Eases Quarantine for Tourists 
Thailand will  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ79A3DWRGG0> reduce the mandatory quarantine period for foreign travelers from next month but deferred a decision on recognizing vaccine certificates for easier global mobility amid a spike in global virus cases.

Hong Kong May Ease Curbs If 50% Vaccinated 
Hong Kong’s government  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ76JGDWLU6O> sees the potential to relax some social distancing measures when at least 50% of the people in the city are vaccinated, and the government may consider resuming hospital and care home visitations if visitors and staff are vaccinated.

Canada Says Astra’s Benefits Outweigh Risks 
Health Canada says that the benefits of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine continue to outweigh the risks, according to a  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ71HYDWLU6M> statement. Health Canada says it assessed the available data and determined that the vaccine has not been associated with an increase in overall risk of blood clots.

Mexico Reports Almost 700 Covid Deaths 
Mexico reported a daily rise of  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/terminal/QQ6YZODWRGG0> 698 deaths, bringing the total to 196,606, according to data released by the Health Ministry. Mexico has administered almost five million doses of the vaccine against coronavirus.

Denmark to Ease Curbs 
Denmark will ease some restrictions on March 22, before a previous deadline of April 6, after the number of virus cases stabilized in recent weeks. The limit on public crowds will be raised to 10 from 5 and more students will be allowed to return to schools, the government said in a statement on Thursday.

More U.S. States to Open Vaccines to All 
More U.S. states committed to a date to open vaccine eligibility to all people 16 years and older:

·         Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker said the state would open eligibility on April 12 except for Chicago, which makes its own rules. Chicago estimates that it will open up vaccines to adults with underlying medical conditions on March 29 and all adults on May 31

·         Utah Governor Spencer Cox said the state would begin full eligibility on March 24

·         Maryland Governor Larry Hogan said that all people 16 and older with underlying medical conditions would become eligible on March 30 and all adults “no later” than April 27

·         Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee said full eligibility would open April 19

Biden Marks Vaccine Milestone 
President Joe Biden announced the U.S. on Friday will clinch his goal of administering  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-18/biden-says-u-s-to-meet-100-million-shot-goal-six-weeks-early> 100 million Covid-19 vaccine shots in the first 100 days of his presidency, reaching the mark six weeks ahead of time.

“I’m proud to announce that tomorrow, 58 days into our administration, we will have met my goal of administering 100 million shots to our fellow Americans. That’s weeks ahead of schedule,” Biden said, speaking Thursday at the White House.

The U.S. recorded 2.7 million more doses on Thursday, pushing the cumulative total to 115.7 million shots given, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As of data reported on inauguration day, the U.S. had given about 16.5 million doses.

Ontario Leader Grateful for Shots 
The Biden administration plans to send about  <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-18/biden-weighs-plan-to-send-4-million-vaccines-to-mexico-canada> 4 million doses of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine to neighboring Mexico and Canada, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said. It would represent the U.S.’s first known exports of domestically produced vaccines.

Rarely at a loss for words, Ontario Premier Doug Ford was almost overcome with gratitude after learning of the plan.

New cases of Covid-19 have been creeping higher in Canada’s most populous province as vaccination efforts have been slowed by lack of supply.

France Plans Lockdown in Paris Area 
France is locking down the Paris area as it suffers to contain a third wave of the coronavirus epidemic, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced.

In a bid to contain the resurgence in cases, only essential businesses and schools will stay open, he said on Thursday. The measures will start from midnight on Friday and will remain in place for four weeks.

Italy Cases Slow 
Italy reported 24,935 cases Thursday, down 3% from a week earlier. That marks the first decline in a month and suggests the latest resurgence in infections in the country may have peaked. The country had 423 fatalities linked to Covid-19, down from 431 Wednesday, while the number of patients in intensive care units climbed again, to 3,333. In some regions such as Lombardy ICU occupancy rates are above 50%.

Pandemic Shrank Middle Class 
The global middle class shrank for the first time in decades last year because of the Covid-19 pandemic, with almost two-thirds of households in developing economies reporting they suffered a loss in income, according to two new estimates based on World Bank data.

In a study published Thursday, researchers at the non-partisan Pew Research Center found that the ranks of the global middle class -- those earning $10-$50 per day -- fell by 90 million people to almost 2.5 billion last year. That helped swell the ranks of the poor, or those living on less than $2 a day, by 131 million, Pew estimated.

U.K. Doses Delayed 
A delayed shipment of AstraZeneca’s vaccine from India and a batch requiring re-testing are behind a cut in the U.K.’s available supplies, the first major interruption in Britain’s vaccine rollout.

Vaccine doses made by one of Astra’s manufacturing partners, the Serum Institute of India Ltd., have been stalled, and another 1.7 million doses have been kept back in the last week for further checks on their stability, U.K. Health Secretary Matt Hancock told Parliament in a statement Thursday

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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