Along the shopping street Drottninggatan in central Stockholm, the Swedes are out shopping for Christmas, on Dec 4, 2020 in Stockholm, Sweden. (PHOTO / BLOOMBERG)

BUCHAREST / STOCKHOLM / NEW YORK / LONDON / DUBLIN / MEXICO CITY / RIO DE JANEIRO / WASHINGTON / HARARE / NIAMEY / ABUJA / LJUBLJANA / THE HAGUE / PARIS / SANTIAGO / GENEVA / BRUSSELS / PANAMA CITY / LA PAZ / COPENHAGEN / TALLINN / TEGUCIGALPA / SOFIA / TORONTO / OTTAWA / BERLIN / ROME / TBILISI - Germany’s daily coronavirus-related deaths rose the most since the outbreak began, highlighting the government’s struggles to contain the spread of the disease.

There were 568 fatalities in the 24 hours through Wednesday morning, taking the toll to 20,002, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That exceeded the previous high of 510 in mid-April.

New cases rose by 29,263, the second highest level since the pandemic began. The latest incidence rate stands at 149 infections per 100,000 people over the past seven days, nearly three times the level that the Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government has determined to be manageable.

The number of people dying from the virus has increased dramatically in recent weeks, with the daily toll regularly exceeding 200 since Nov 11. Around 82 percent of all intensive care beds are occupied, and the number of severe COVID-19 patients has been at record levels for weeks.

Merkel on Wednesday urged Germans to make an additional sacrifice over the Christmas holidays to contain the coronavirus.

She said that she agreed with recommendations to close shops in Europe’s largest economy after Christmas until Jan 10 and opposed opening hotels so that families can visit each other over the holiday period.

Speaking in the Bundestag lower house of parliament, Merkel said people in Germany had not reduced their contact with others to a sufficient degree.

A soft shutdown in Germany has so far failed to lower contagion rates, and some states are pushing through tougher measures. The eastern state of Saxony, which has the nation’s worst outbreak, plans to close all non-essential shops from next week. Bavaria will implement a state of emergency on Wednesday, restricting most people to their homes unless they have a valid reason.

Sweden

Sweden’s government proposed a law that would give it the power to close stores in response to a worsening pandemic.

The bill, which would allow the minority coalition to cut shops’ opening hours and limit footfall, is due to take effect in March if it makes it through the consultation process, Minister of Health and Social Affairs Lena Hallengren said on Wednesday. She stressed that the government would only shutter businesses as a last resort, if parliament agrees.

“We are not rid of the pandemic, even if the vaccines obviously brighten the prospects,” Hallengren said. “We see a need to have regulation in place during next year.”

Sweden has so far avoided a full lockdown and relied mostly on voluntary measures to fight the pandemic. That’s in part because the government lacked the legal framework to do more. A temporary law that made it possible to close down businesses expired on June 30, without ever being enforced.

But after a sharp increase in coronavirus cases and deaths, Sweden’s government is stepping up its fight against the pandemic. That includes capping the number of people permitted to gather in public at eight, as well as a ban on alcohol sales after 10 pm.

But Sweden currently has no legal tools to enforce limits on stores, gyms or the use of public transport. The new law, if passed, would stop short of regulating functions at private homes.

Hallengren also said the government’s goal isn’t to impose future lockdowns.

“We have made severe restrictions to people’s way of life, but it’s not possible to close down entirely,” she said. “However, we need to be able to take more exact measures that also impact places that are not covered by current legislation.”

Global tally

Coroanvirus cases worldwide has surpassed 68 million while the global death toll topped 1.55 million, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

WHO

Some carriers are seeking “outrageous” prices to fly dry ice and other medical equipment in the pre-holiday rush, but a capacity squeeze should ease in 2021 when the roll-out of COVID-19 vaccines is expected, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) logistics chief said on Tuesday.

Distribution of vaccines to low- and middle-income countries will be tricky, due to grounded passenger air services in some places, and may rely on charters, Paul Molinaro, WHO chief of operations support and logistics, told Reuters.

Price inflation has been a growing feature in air freight, with “across the board increases especially since November,” Molinaro said.

He cited a price quote just received for a dry ice shipment, needed to cool some lab re-agents, which is around 20 times the norm.

Airline body IATA’s chief economist Brian Pearce told reporters on Tuesday that Christmas demand “exaggerates the problem” of soaring cargo rates, which should ease early next year in time for the ramp-up in vaccine shipments.

The WHO is providing technical guidance to all countries on cold chain issues, Molinaro said, noting that the Pfizer vaccine requires storage at minus 70 degrees Celsius.

Pfizer Chief Executive Albert Bourla on Tuesday reiterated confidence in Pfizer’s ability to deliver its vaccine, developed with BioNTech, saying the companies are working on a “new formulation” capable of withstanding higher temperatures.

AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine

On the day the United Kingdom began immunizing its population with a COVID-19 shot developed by BioNTech SE and the Pfizer Inc, a peer-reviewed study of the UK’s homegrown vaccine left some key questions unanswered.

While trial results published Tuesday in The Lancet found that a vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca Plc is safe and effective, more analysis will be needed to see how well it works in people over 55, among those at higher risk from the pandemic.

Because older adults were recruited to the studies later than younger ones, “they’ve had less time for cases to accrue in those age groups and for us to be able to measure an efficacy signal,” said Andrew Pollard, lead investigator on the Oxford trial. “The evidence we have so far on the immune response very much suggests that it’s likely to be similar levels of protection across the ages.”

ALSO READ: Astra-Oxford vaccine prevents 70% of COVID-19 cases

The Lancet report provides the first peer-reviewed data from any of the leading vaccines.

Further trials to substantiate the findings and an investigation of efficacy in older adults are needed, Maria Deloria Knoll and Chizoba Wonodi of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health wrote in an article accompanying the data.

The authors noted “limitations” with the results, including less than 4 percent of participants who were older than 70 years of age, as well as the finding that no participants older than 55 received the mixed-dose regimen. Still, they said that the expected lower price of the vaccine holds promise for lower- and middle-income nations.

Belgium

Belgium's COVID-19 cases totaled 594,572 by Wednesday morning, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

The toll stood at 17,507, according to the data.

The number of daily new cases has been steadily decreasing amid a second wave in the country, which witnessed a peak in late October, according to the data. 

Bolivia

Bolivia's health ministry on Tuesday reported 189 new COVID-19 cases, bringing its national caseload to 145,846.

It also reported five more related deaths and 249 new recoveries.

Brazil

Brazilian governors on Tuesday requested the federal government to grant emergency authorization to all COVID-19 vaccines approved abroad so that they can be used in Brazil.

The request came on the same day the Ministry of Heatlh reported that Brazil's COVID-19 death toll has reached 178,159 after 842 more deaths were recorded in the previous 24 hours.

According to the ministry, tests detected 51,088 new cases, raising the national caseload to 6,674,999.

Bulgaria

Bulgaria confirmed 3,980 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the country's caseload to 168,165, according to data published by the country's Unified Information Portal on Wednesday.

Another 146 newly reported deaths pushed the toll to 5,156, according to data.

Canada

Canada is confident there will be no disruption of COVID-19 vaccine supplies even if the United States blocks their export because vaccines are manufactured in several countries, a government official said on Tuesday.

Canada said it was confident there would be no disruption of vaccine supplies, after US President Donald Trump issued an executive order to ensure Americans are first in line for domestically produced vaccines

The remarks came after US President Donald Trump issued an executive order to ensure Americans are first in line for domestically produced coronavirus vaccines.

Dominic LeBlanc, minister of intergovernmental affairs, said Canada’s purchases are not tied to any one manufacturing site, and noted Pfizer manufactures in Europe as well as the United States. Canada is expected to receive up to 249,000 doses of Pfizer’s shots this month.

Quebec plans to start inoculating residents and staff next week at two long-term care facilities.

Canada reported 5,981 new COVID-19 cases and 90 more deaths on Tuesday, bringing the tally to 429,035 and the toll to 12,867, according to a report by the Canadian Press.

Alberta, which has the highest provincial rate of active cases, said it would close gyms and casinos, and halt dining inside restaurants as of Sunday.

Manitoba extended its strict public health restrictions to early January.

Chile

Chile on Tuesday said a total of 563,534 people have been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus since the start of the outbreak and 15,680 have died.

In the last 24 hours, tests detected 1,389 new cases and 17 more patients have died, according to the Health Ministry.

Given a rise in infections in recent days, authorities have decided to reimpose partial lockdowns in the capital Santiago and metropolitan area, starting Thursday.

The partial lockdown means non-essential businesses must close weekends, only restaurants offering alfresco dining on terraces will be able to operate, and interregional trips will be temporarily banned.

Denmark

Denmark reported 2,150 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, bringing the tally to 94,799, according to the Danish Statens Serum Institute (SSI).

The country also reported seven more deaths, taking the death toll to 901, said the SSI, a governmental public health and research institution under the Danish Ministry of Health. 

Danish badminton star Anders Antonsen confirmed he tested positive for COVID-19 on Denmark's TV2 Sport on Wednesday.

The Denmark Open winner revealed he was diagnosed last Friday, the day after playing in a team match in Aarhus, the second largest city and 307 km west from the capital city of Copenhagen.

Estonia

The Estonian government on Tuesday decided to continue implementing the crisis aid measures in the coming year to support the economy in difficult times amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision adopted at a cabinet meeting involves the emergency crisis measures to increase the limit of the credit loss indemnity from 30 percent to 50 percent in guaranteeing new loans granted by banks, Estonian Rural Development Foundation's loan guarantees, working capital and investment loans, according to a government press release.

Under the decision, the government will continue to support measures for the financial lease of agricultural land as well as the Estonian tourism sector, according to the press release.

Coronavirus has claimed the lives of 137 people in Estonia, which has recorded 15,510 confirmed cases, statistics from the Estonian Health Board showed on Tuesday.

France

France will delay relaxing some COVID-19 lockdown restrictions if necessary to stave off a third wave of infections, government spokesman Gabriel Attal said on Wednesday.

France is mulling “many options” related to to the planned loosening of lockdown measures scheduled for Dec 15 as the number of COVID-19 cases remains high, Health Minister Olivier Veran said in an interview on LCI TV on Tuesday, adding that the situation is “worrying”.

The government will discuss the COVID-19 situation Wednesday, and an announcement is due before end of the week, he said.

Another 13,713 people in France tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, bringing the tally to more than 2.3 million, according to official figures released Tuesday.

The daily tally was the highest in six days, and well above the target of 5,000 daily cases the government has set as condition to lift the lockdown next week.

The death toll rose to 56,352 after 831 more deaths were recorded, the data showed.

Some 25,914 patients were hospitalized, of whom 3,088 were in intensive care, down by 451 and 110, respectively.  

Meanwhile, the country's agriculture ministry said Wednesday that a outbreak detected last month on a mink farm in France did not involve a mutated strain of the virus.

Georgia

Georgia reported 4,734 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing its tally to 174,383, the National Center for Disease Control and Public Health (NCDC) said.

Of the new cases, 1,637 were confirmed in the capital city of Tbilisi. 

As of Wednesday, 145,287 patients have recovered while 1,614 have died, the center said.

Honduras

Honduras on Tuesday reported 684 new COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours, bringing the country's tally to 111,707, the health ministry tweeted on its official account.

The country also reported four more deaths, raising the death toll to 2,950, said the ministry.

Ireland

Workers in the Irish education sector and those in essential jobs unable to avoid a high risk of exposure will be prioritized in the government’s planned COVID-19 vaccine rollout ahead of a wider distribution to those under 65.

Under the approach outlined by Ireland on Tuesday, key workers in environments where there is a high risk of exposure, such as food supply, public and commercial transport, will be placed ahead of those aged 55-64 years, alongside school and pre-school staff.

Subsequently, “occupations important to the functioning of society” where protective measures can be followed without much difficulty, such as the entertainment sector, will get priority over the remaining 18-54 year-olds to try to enable social and economic activity, the government said.

Ireland on Tuesday afternoon reported 215 new cases and one more death, taking the tally to 74,682 and the toll to 2,097, the National Public Health Emergency Team said in a statement.

There were 210 patients hospitalized, including 31 in intensive care , it added.

Italy

Italy reported on Tuesday 14,837 new COVID-19 cases, bringing its tally to 1,757,394, according to the country's health authorities.

The health ministry said 634 additional fatalities were registered over the past day, lifting the toll to 61,240.

Kenya

Kenya may choose the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine as it can be kept using standard refrigeration rather than complex cold storage, the Daily Nation newspaper reported, citing the health department’s chief administrative secretary.

A worker takes the temperature of a woman arriving at the main entrance to the Central de Abastos, the Mexican capital's main market, in Mexico City, on Dec 8, 2020. (REBECCA BLACKWELL / AP)

Mexico

Mexico's vaccination campaign against COVID-19 is expected to begin before the end of the month with priority given to healthcare professionals and the elderly, the government said on Tuesday.

Vaccination in Mexico should begin "in the last days of the third week of December" and last until February 2021, starting in the capital Mexico City and northern Coahuila state, according to Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell

Vaccination should begin "in the last days of the third week of December" and last until February 2021, starting in the capital Mexico City and northern Coahuila state, according to Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell.

Doctors and nurses on the frontline of the fight against the virus will be the first to receive the vaccine, along with vulnerable people, notably the elderly, Lopez-Gatell said.

According to Foreign Affairs Minister Marcelo Ebrard, about 250,000 doses of vaccine will arrive in Mexico this month.

Mexico reported on Tuesday 11,006 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the tally to 1,193,255, according to its health ministry. Deaths rose by 800 to 110,874.

Inspired by China's successful practice of fighting the pandemic, Mexico's capital is relying on QR codes and smartphones to identify close contacts of COVID-19 patients and break the chains of infection, according to local authorities.

Since Nov 18, QR codes have been posted at establishments with frequent foot traffic in Mexico City, including banks, restaurants and shops, forming a rapid-response network to notify those potentially exposed to the coronavirus.

Moldova

Moldovan Prime Minister Ion Chicu has been diagnosed with COVID-19, according to an announcement made by his communications adviser, Boris Harea, late Tuesday.

Making the announcement in a social media post, Harea did not disclose other details about the prime minister's condition, but noted that the head of government will continue to perform his duties, but will work remotely.

Chicu had told local media earlier that many of his cabinet members had been infected with COVID-19.

According to the latest data released on Tuesday by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Protection, 1,709 new COVID-19 cases were recorded nationwide in the last 24 hours, bringing the tally to 119,204 in the country with a population of 3.5 million.

The death toll climbed by 22 to 2,460, the ministry said.

Morocco

Morocco reported Tueday 2,900 new COVID-19 cases and 50 more deaths, raising the total infections in the country to 384,088 and the death toll to 6,370.

Moroccan King Mohammed VI ordered the government to provide a vaccine against COVID-19 free of charge to all the inhabitants.

A mass vaccination is to be launched in the coming weeks, the Royal Cabinet said in a statement.

Netherlands

The Dutch government will stick to the current partial lockdown, which has been in effect since Oct 14, to combat COVID-19 amid rising infection numbers, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced at a press conference Tuesday.

"It is really not going well with the infection figures and in the hospitals," Rutte said. 

Rutte's remarks came as the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) said that the increase in newly reported COVID-19 infections was a "cause for concern". 

In the week of Dec 2-8, a total of 43,103 confirmed cases were recorded, an increase of more than 9,000 infections compared with the week before.

The number of people admitted to hospitals for COVID-19 was 1,229, compared with 1,007 admissions in the previous week. There were 179 admissions to intensive care in the past week, compared to 183 the week before.

Meanwhile, Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport Hugo de Jonge said that care workers at nursing homes will, probably next month, be the first in the country to receive a call to be vaccinated.

Niger

Niger on Tuesday confirmed 93 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the nation's caseload to 1,987, said the country's Ministry of Public Health.

One more death was also reported, taking the death toll to 79.

Nigeria

Nigeria on Tuesday confirmed 550 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the tally to 70,195, said the country's Center for Disease Control (CDC).

The death toll has risen to 1,182, according to the CDC.

Panama

Panama confirmed 1,936 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, bringing the tally to 181,166, the Ministry of Health reported.

The country also saw 29 more deaths, taking its total death toll to 3,241, said the ministry. 

Romania

Romania on Tuesday reported 7,439 new COVID-19 cases, bringing its total number of infections to 524,675, according to official statistics.   

The country also reported 213 more deaths, raising the total death toll to 12,660. 

Slovenia

Slovenia on Tuesday reported 66 COVID-19-related deaths in the past 24 hours, the highest daily toll yet, taking the total number of fatalities in the country to 1,862.

In the same period, 1,627 new cases were also reported, pushing the tally to 87,915.

A total of 1,304 patients were being treated in hospitals, up by three, and 193 were in intensive care, down by three.

Switzerland

Switzerland’s federal government plans to work with cantons, or states, to unify restrictions to fight the pandemic. 

The proposed new measures, including reducing opening hours for shops and restaurants, would take effect from Dec 12 and last until Jan 20. 

Measures could be tightened further on Dec 18, when restaurants and shops might shut altogether, if case loads don’t come down.

The country of about 8.5 million on Tuesday reported 4,262 new infections, up 12 percent from a week ago.

UK

UK Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove said Wednesday that pandemic curbs could be eased from early next year as the country embarked on a vaccination campaign. 

Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned Tuesday that the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine would help the country overcome the virus but it would be a long process before it was totally defeated.

The United Kingdom was the first country globally to begin mass inoculations on Tuesday with a shot developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.

British Health Minister Matt Hancock said he expected millions of people in the country to receive a vaccine against COVID-19 by Christmas

READ MORE: British grandma 1st in world to get Pfizer vaccine outside trial

Health Minister Matt Hancock said he expected millions of people in the country to receive a vaccine against COVID-19 by Christmas.

The UK reported 12,282 new cases to push its tally to 1,750,241, according to official figures released Tuesday. Deaths rose by 616 to 62,033, the data showed.

Johnson warned London was facing a rise in infections as he urged the public to stick to the pandemic rules.

Earlier Tuesday, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that a total of 3,040 deaths registered in England and Wales in the week ending Nov 27 mentioned COVID-19 on the death certificate, marking the highest number of deaths related to the disease since May 15.

Scotland's education secretary confirmed that next year's Higher and Advanced Highers exams will be canceled in Scottish schools.

Meanwhile, cases were found to be low in schools that reopened in England after the first nationwide lockdown, suggesting there was little risk of spreading the disease, according to a study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal.

A sign advising shoppers of social distancing measures is seen at the entrance of a shop in Park Meadows Mall in Lone Tree, Colorado, the United States, on Dec 8, 2020. (DAVID ZALUBOWSKI / AP)

US

The United States has set new world records for COVID-19 core metrics, including hospitalizations, seven-day average case and death tallies, as the total number of confirmed cases topped 15 million on Tuesday.

It took only five days for the country to add 1 million new infections, the highest growth rate since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country.

The nation recorded more than 186,000 new daily cases and 1,500 deaths on Monday, bringing the seven-day average daily case increase to a record 196,500 cases, according to data updated Tuesday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The US has recorded more than 15.01 million COVID-19 cases with over 284,800 related deaths as of Tuesday afternoon, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University

The seven-day average daily deaths stood at 2,211 as of Monday, also the highest since April 25.

There were 102,148 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19 in the United States, a new record since the start of the pandemic, according to the COVID Tracking Project.

The US has recorded more than 15.01 million COVID-19 cases with over 284,800 related deaths as of Tuesday afternoon, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

The US remains the nation worst hit by the pandemic with the most cases and deaths in the world, making up more than 22 percent of the global caseload.

US regulators gave early indications they may grant emergency-use authorization to Pfizer Inc’s vaccine, calling the shot highly effective with no safety issues. 

ALSO READ: Pfizer shot effective, safe, FDA staff concludes before meeting

Meanwhile, the White House proposed a new US$916-billion relief package to Congress.

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe reported 73 new cases of COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, bringing the tally to 10,912, the health ministry tweeted Wednesday on its official account.

The country also reported nine more deaths, raising the toll to 303, said the ministry.

A total of 9,062 people have recovered from the disease across the land-locked country in southern Africa. 

Zimbabwe's largest referral hospital said Tuesday that it will suspend patient visits starting from Wednesday amid surging COVID-19 cases.

Zambia 

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday urged Zambia to be wary of second surge of COVID-19 which other countries on the continent have started experiencing.

Visiting Deputy Director of the Africa CDC Ahmed Ouma said although Zambia was not one of the listed countries for the second wave of the pandemic, there was a need for citizens not to be complacent as the country also has hotspots.

"We are seeing a second wave since the mid of October, the second wave is not uniform across Africa, it is being driven by certain countries because of different socio-economic and particularly environmental factors that exist on the continent," he told reporters during a press briefing.

He however said that despite having second wave on the African continent the curve was not steep as the first wave and that it was expected to be lower than the first one.

The CDC, he said, was supporting Zambia with rapid responders to help in combating the further spread of the pandemic.

Ministry of Health Permanent Secretary for Technical Services Kennedy Malama said the country still faces threats from the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said the country has continued recording severe COVID-19 cases especially for patients with underlying health conditions.

Zambia so far recorded cumulative 18,015 cases following 52 cases in the last 24 hours, according to the Zambia Institute of Public Health. 

Russia 

Russia registered 26,190 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, taking its total to 2,541,199, the country's COVID-19 response center said in a statement Wednesday.

Meanwhile, 559 new deaths were reported, taking the nationwide count to 44,718.

Moscow, the country's worst-hit region, reported 5,145 new cases, taking its tally of infections to 665,218, the response center said.

According to the statement, 2,007,792 people have recovered, including 26,266 over the past day.

So far, over 80.5 million tests have been conducted across the country.

Belarus 

Belarus reported 1,851 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, taking its total to 152,453, the country's health ministry reported.

There have been 2,422 new recoveries in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 129,950, the ministry added.

So far, a total of 1,230 people have died of the disease in the country, including eight over the past 24 hours, it said.

As of Wednesday, 3,487,468 tests for the virus have been conducted across the country, including 25,715 over the past 24 hours, according to official figures.

Uganda 

Uganda has applied through the Global Alliances for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) to secure the COVID-19 vaccine from drugmaker AstraZeneca amid surging cases in the country, the ministry of health said Tuesday.

Henry Mwebesa, director general of health services, said in a statement that the application process is in advanced stage and the public would be informed when the vaccine arrives in the country.

"It's important to note that only vaccines approved by the ministry of health and WHO can be administered to the population of Uganda," Mwebesa added.

As of Monday, Uganda had registered a total of 23,860 COVID-19 cases, 9,510 recoveries and 207 deaths since the first case was reported on March 21.

The ministry has warned that the COVID-19 situation in the country is getting worse. It has urged the public to follow the prevention procedures.